German, English fans battle before UEFA Cup match

BERLIN, Nov 23 (Reuters) A brawl between German and England fans caused 5,000 euros (,487) of damage to a bar in the centre of Cologne ahead of a UEFA Cup match on Thursday between Bayer Leverkusen and Tottenham Hotspur, police said.

Police in Cologne, which is just south of Leverkusen, detained five Germans after the fight that took place late on Wednesday but they were later released when it turned out they had not been directly in involved.

''It lasted for about 10 or 15 minutes and they caused a lot of damge to the tavern,'' Cologne police spokesman Bernd Kalkum told Reuters. ''The windows, the furniture were all badly damaged. They threw chairs and everything at each other.'' He said a group of about 20 known German hooligans from the nearby city of Essen started provoking a small group of English fans, who quickly got support from about 80 compatriots.

The outnumbered Germans then fled into a bar where most of the fighting took place.

''All the assailants fled when police arrived,'' Kalkum said.

REUTERS SAM ND2046