Two football supporters were burned and a young child's clothing was damaged when a flare was thrown into a crowd during Portsmouth's Championship fixture against Blackburn Rovers at Fratton Park on 19 September.

According to Hampshire Police, the flare was thrown from the away section into a group of Portsmouth supporters in the Milton stand. A 46-year-old woman from Havant and a 26-year-old man from Gosport both suffered minor burns. A five-year-old boy, also from Gosport, had his clothing damaged in the incident.

Police appeal for information

Hampshire Police has released CCTV images of a man officers wish to speak to in connection with the incident. Those images have also been shared with Lancashire Constabulary, reflecting the cross-county nature of the investigation. The force is asking anyone who recognises the individual, or who holds any information about what happened, to come forward.

The club liaison between Hampshire and Lancashire police is standard practice when away supporters are involved in crowd safety incidents, and it underlines that responsibility for identifying those present in the away end does not stop at the county border.

A serious safety concern

The use of pyrotechnics inside football grounds is illegal under the Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc.) Act 1985, and carrying a flare into a ground can result in a football banning order as well as a criminal conviction. Grounds-safety campaigners have long argued that enforcement at entry points needs to be more rigorous, particularly as pyrotechnic incidents have become more frequent across the Football League in recent seasons.

Fratton Park, which regularly attracts attendances above 18,000 for Championship fixtures, presents particular challenges in that respect. The Milton stand, where Portsmouth supporters were standing when the flare landed, sits directly adjacent to the away section, making the risk of objects crossing between the two areas a persistent concern for ground safety officers.

Context of the fixture

The match between Portsmouth and Blackburn was one that attracted considerable attention before kick-off, with both clubs occupying mid-table positions in the second tier and the fixture carrying its own local significance for the travelling Blackburn support who had made the journey south. That context makes the behaviour of whoever threw the flare all the more difficult to explain to those who were simply there to watch the football.

A five-year-old child at a Championship match is, plainly, there because a parent or guardian wanted to share something they care about with their family. The damage done to that child's clothing is the least serious physical consequence of what happened, but it is in some ways the most telling: this is what pyrotechnics inside grounds actually look like in practice, once the social-media footage is set aside.

What happens next

Both clubs are expected to cooperate fully with the police investigation. Should the individual identified in the CCTV images be traced and convicted, football banning order proceedings would ordinarily follow. Portsmouth FC and the English Football League both have formal obligations to report crowd safety incidents of this nature to the relevant authorities.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Hampshire Police directly. The force has not yet confirmed whether any arrests have been made.

Frequently asked

What happened at Fratton Park during the Portsmouth vs Blackburn match?
A flare was thrown from the away section into a group of Portsmouth supporters in the Milton stand during the Championship fixture on 19 September. Two adults suffered minor burns and a five-year-old boy had his clothing damaged.
Is it illegal to bring a flare into a football ground in England?
Yes. Carrying a pyrotechnic device into a football ground is illegal under the Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc.) Act 1985. Those convicted can face criminal penalties and a football banning order.
How can I report information to Hampshire Police about the Fratton Park flare incident?
Hampshire Police have released CCTV images of a man they wish to speak to and are asking anyone with information to contact them directly. The images have also been shared with Lancashire Constabulary.