Sporting striker Paulinho scored just one goal against rivals Boavista on Tuesday — but it was the point that allowed Sporting to become Portugal’s football champions for the first time after 19 years.
If you were in Lisbon yesterday, it was hard to miss the green-and-white colors of the team worn by mostly men, mostly young, who roamed the streets in packs even before Sporting won. After the match is when things got really exciting, though, with the sound of DIY fireworks all across the city and, of course, lots and lots of chanting.
SAPO went to the scene to photograph what they describe as “the apotheotic arrival of the Sporting team to Marquês de Pombal,” at around 4 in the morning, complete with shirtless fans, lots of green torches, and a ton of riot gear police looking pretty nervous. See the photographs here.
À chegada dos nossos Leões ao Marquês de Pombal! 🔥
— Sporting Orgulho (@SportingOrgulho) May 12, 2021
19 anos depois, voltamos a erguer o título! Somos Campeões Nacionais! 💚💪 pic.twitter.com/wITbRJvxVp
Público, meanwhile, stuck around for the festivities at Alvalade Stadium — Sporting’s home ground — when some of the more aggressive fans among the Juventude Leonina club started throwing things, including “pyrotechnic objects,” at the police, and when the police fired back with rubber bullets. There were no major injuries, but some people were hurt, Público writes, including a TVI 24 reporter who was hit in the leg by a rubber bullet.
