Violence broke out between England and Serbia fans in central Gelsenkirchen after football hooligans started a brawl on the streets of the German city.
Hundreds of German riot police were forced to intervene after a dozen England fans attempted to start a running battle with Serbians after rushing fans sitting outside the Hirt Steakhouse.
The English hooligans hurled bottles, chairs and tables as they started the “premeditated” brawl with Serbians after “looking for a scrap” ahead of the Three Lions’ opening game against Serbia at the Veltins-Arena.
Police arrested seven Serbians who retaliated and detained several England fans following the fight which left a man in his twenties from Birmingham with blood pouring from his head.
Some witnesses claimed some attackers, including one with a Bolton Wanderers tattoo and another with a ‘Lest We Forget’ tattoo, were wearing masks and Albanians were also involved.
An English fan, Larry, who was not involved in the violence, claimed a group of men in balaclavas “ran around the corner and started throwing bottles”.
“I ran away and the next thing I saw was the tables being smashed and chairs being thrown.”
His friend added: “It was premeditated. They threw bottles, I just ran off.”
The Serbian group attacked by England fans included former cruiserweight boxer Alexander Petkovic, who unsuccessfully challenged Britain’s Jonny Nelson in 2003
Speaking outside the restaurant minutes before the attack, Mr Petkovic: “It’s always possible that there will be trouble but Serbia will never attack first.
However he added: “If we are attacked then we will fight back. It is in the history of Serbians to defend ourselves.”
A mother and son enjoying their regular Sunday routine of coffee and cake at the Café Pabot opposite the Hirt Steakhouse said they were sat on the first floor when “all of a sudden bits of food and bottles started being thrown.”
“It happened so fast,” Felix Wurmes, 35, said. “Then one group ran off, followed by the other.”
His mother, Beate Rafrlkski, 66, added: “They have had too much beer I expect – there’s too much emotion. We were anxious the trouble was going to spread to inside the café.”
Café worker Petra Thiel said another person who was in the restaurant at the time told her she had heard the attackers shouting something in Serbian.
“In total, there were about 50 people involved,” she added. “I didn’t see any masks.”
A Croatian fan who witnessed the disorder said: “It all happened really quickly.”
She added: “I think they were English hooligans because they screamed something in English. The English were throwing bottles and then the Serbians started throwing them back. Then the attackers ran off in the opposite direction and we ran away. It was very scary.”
Earlier a group of England fans near the city’s train station fought among themselves and one man was detained as bottles were hurled outside a bar.
Police are believed to be checking bars for those involved in the clash with Serbians and detained some fans from a pub where there was a heavy police presence. A group of Serbian fans, believed to be ultras, were escorted by police through the city.
Some Albanian hooligans were also present and pictures on social media showed some meeting up with England thugs.
A spokesman for Gelsenkirchen police said: “There was a clash between Serbian and English football fans in the south of the city of Gelsenkirchen. These fan groups were separated. The police measures are currently ongoing. The background to the dispute has not yet been clarified.”
A UK Football Policing Unit spokesman said any fans identified would be issued with banning orders.
