A mass brawl broke out yesterday between players of Iran's two top football teams and spread to the spectators, leaving six people injured. The violence flared towards the end of the match at the Azadi stadium in Tehran in which Pirouzi and Esteghlal were drawing 2-2.

Pirouzi's goalkeeper Parviz Bouroumand punched an Esteghlal player in the face and although the South Korean referee penalised the goalkeeper, the players began fighting on the pitch in front of 100,000 spectators.

At the end of the match supporters from each side began fighting until riot police intervened and arrested around 15 people. The crowd began to disperse early in the evening.

There has been intense rivalry between the two teams, who both have internationals in the ranks, for the past 30 years and matches between the two often involve violence.