Around 15,000 Corinthians fans turned up at Guarulhos International Airport in São Paulo on Monday evening to say goodbye to the Copa Libertadores champions as they fly off to Dubai to start their preparations for the Fifa Club World Cup later this month.
However, the farewell turned nasty when fans clashed with police at the airport, causing damage to glass, fire hydrants and road signs.
The problems started after the players had arrived and been ushered onto the plane via a side entrance, the Corinthians fans started to enter the airport terminal and chaos broke out.
A statement from Guarulhos International Airport said the incident “did not impact the operation of takeoffs and landings at the airport terminal”.
The statement also tried to downplay by adding:
“There was significant damage to airport facilities, but we are operating normally. Despite the large number of fans, the few incidents were resolved overnight.”
The plan for Corinthians is to fly to Dubai for a few days training before heading on to Japan, where the tournament will take place.
Corinthians are favourites to make the final of the tournament, where they will be expected to meet European champions, and tournament favourites, Chelsea.
