Three days after a young man suffered a life-threatening injury in a brawl at a youth football tournament in Frankfurt am Main, the 15-year-old succumbed to his severe brain injuries on Wednesday. In the coming days, an autopsy should clarify the exact cause of death, said the Frankfurt police. How the brawl came about and how it happened is still being determined.
“After a fight broke out after a soccer game as part of an international youth tournament in Eckenheim last Whit Sunday, the 15-year-old victim died today in hospital as a result of his severe brain injuries,” the police said in a statement .
The teenager was declared brain dead on Tuesday. According to the public prosecutor’s office, the machines that then took care of him initially remained switched on for the removal of donor organs. In the course of Wednesday, however, these were turned off.
On Pentecost Sunday, the brawl broke out at an international youth football tournament in the Eckenheim district after the final whistle of a game between French FC Metz and JFC Berlin. A 16-year-old from France is said to have hit the 15-year-old from Berlin in the head or neck.
According to the arrest warrant (accusation: serious bodily harm), the 16-year-old from Metz is said to have attacked another opponent and hit him in the face with both fists. Then he is said to have put the 15-year-old Berliner in a headlock and hit him in the stomach. According to information from the picture, the victim was able to free himself and leave. The 16-year-old is said to have run after his victim and hit him on the head. The Berliner collapsed on the square, the attacker is said to have simply walked away This was confirmed by senior prosecutor Nadja Niesen to Bild.
The victim had to be resuscitated and then taken to a hospital. Life-threatening brain injuries were found there. The 16-year-old is in custody. The French club FC Metz reacted “stunned”. The club said on its website that its player denied “deliberately causing physical harm to the injured young player”.
“We were stunned to hear the news about what happened at the youth tournament in Frankfurt am Main. Our thoughts and sympathy go out to all of the affected player’s family and team members at this difficult time. We have been in close contact with JFC Berlin since Sunday to support the club and its members wherever possible,” said Bernd Schultz, President of the Berlin Football Association
