7 of the Most Memorable Fan Protests in World Football

Fan protests are in the news lately, with supporters of both Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool making headlines with memorable demonstrations.

Both of those protests involved the same subject—ticket prices—but over the years, fans have come up with some unforgettable ways to make their displeasure known for a variety of reasons.

Today at Bleacher Report, we're running down a list of some of the most memorable demonstrations in recent times. After looking at our choices, be sure to add your thoughts in the comments section.

Borussia Dortmund

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Borussia Dortmund won 3-1 at Stuttgart on Tuesday in the quarter-finals of the German Cup, but the scoreline didn't generate the biggest headlines. Dortmund's fans did that by boycotting the first 20 minutes of the game and later throwing tennis balls onto the pitch to protest ticket prices.

Per BBC Sport, the cost of admission to Bundesliga games has risen recently, and some tickets to Tuesday's game—which, again, was in the German Cup, not the Bundesliga—sold for €70.

"Obviously it's not something we want to do, but we feel we have to do it," Marc Quambusch, one of the protesters, told the BBC. "We don't feel very good about not supporting the team for the first 20 minutes, but it has to be."

Liverpool Walk-out

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The protest in Stuttgart came just a few days after a similar one in England. On Saturday, while Liverpool hosted Sunderland in a Premier League match, about 10,000 fans walked out of Anfield to show their objections to sky-high ticket prices.

As noted by Samuel Stevens at the Independent, the fans chose to leave the stadium in the 77th minute after Liverpool decided to raise the price of some tickets to £77 next season in the new Main Stand extension.

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, who joined in the walk-out, took Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group to task in his Daily Mail column:

"

Liverpool generate around £35million from ticket income. Had FSG announced a freeze on prices when the new stand was completed, the income would have risen to £37m. The increase means they could generate £39m.

All this for the sake of £2m for the ninth richest club in the world! That would not make the slightest difference when it comes to negotiating for a player. If Jurgen Klopp wants to sign someone and the asking price is £2m more than Liverpool expected, will they miss out on the player? No. But £2m back in the pockets of fans? That would be huge.

"

The protests continued Tuesday night during Liverpool's FA Cup match at West Ham United, with some supporters holding banners that read "Fenway Sports Greed" and "Fleecing Supporters Guaranteed" (h/t James Whaling at the Daily Mirror).

The David Moyes Banner

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David Moyes' tenure as Manchester United's manager lasted less than a year, but when he arrived at the famous club, a banner welcomed him to Old Trafford with the words "The Chosen One."

In March 2014, with United heading toward a disappointing seventh-place finish, some fans had seen enough. According to Telegraph Sport, a group of supporters paid £840 to fly a banner over Old Trafford while United played Aston Villa in the Premier League. The banner read: "Wrong One—Moyes Out."

Moyes was sacked the following month.

Bayern Munich Walk-out and Banner at Arsenal

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It's not every day that one set of supporters applauds their counterparts during a competitive match between their respective teams. But that's exactly what happened during an October 2015 UEFA Champions League group match as some Bayern Munich fans orchestrated a well thought-out demonstration at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium.

Upset with the £64 price tag on away tickets, hundreds of Bayern's traveling supporters boycotted the first five minutes of the game. Then, they raised massive banners that read: "£64 a ticket. But without fans, football is not worth a penny," per Guardian Sport.

According to Adam Shergold at the Daily Mail, a group named FC Bayern Worldwide organized the demonstrations, writing on Twitter: "If Arsenal want to charge £64 for the cheapest ticket, they can expect quiet stadiums and empty seats. That’s what they’ll get a taste of."

A large number of Arsenal fans must have appreciated the gesture, because they could be seen applauding the away section as the game went on.

The Ewood Chicken

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In May 2012, as Blackburn Rovers played Wigan Athletic in the Premier League, a chicken found itself on the loose at Blackburn's Ewood Park. To understand why, we'll need to go into some background material.

Deep in relegation trouble, Blackburn had to beat Wigan that night to have any chance of remaining in England's top flight. Rovers were, and still are, owned by Venky's, an Indian firm that specializes in poultry and processed food.

Letting a chicken run free on the pitch was, therefore, a rather clever protest by one fan, whom the Daily Mail later identified as 23-year-old Anthony Taylor (not to be confused with the English referee of same name).

Blackburn, by the way, lost the game, confirming their relegation to the Championship. 

World Cup Protests in Brazil

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Ahead of the FIFA Confederations Cup and World Cup, which were held in Brazil in 2013 and 2014, respectively, thousands of Brazilians staged protests across the country. At issue was the government's use of public money on construction of World Cup stadiums instead of on housing and other social issues.

Per BBC News, riot police fired tear gas at demonstrators in Sao Paulo and Rio De Janeiro in May 2014. The next month, protesters tried to block the road to the stadium in Sao Paulo, according to Jonathan Watts at the Guardian.

As reported by Watts, the movement drew support from Amnesty International, which condemned the government's use of force to control the protesters. 

"The Brazilian authorities must, without delay, investigate why excessive force was used against peaceful protesters, bring those responsible to justice and ensure this does not happen again," said Atila Roque, director of Amnesty International Brazil, per the Guardian report.

Various protests continued throughout the World Cup.

Luis Figo and the Pig's Head

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Portuguese winger Luis Figo spent five years at Barcelona before moving to hated rivals Real Madrid in 2000. The move didn't go over particularly well at Barca's Camp Nou.

On his second return to Catalonia, in November 2002, Figo was the subject on intense anger from Barcelona's fans. In addition to the usual booing, hissing and whistles, however, some fans threw bottles at Figo during the game. But that wasn't all. 

In one of the most memorable moments of the long, storied rivalry, a pig's head was thrown in Figo's direction as he went to take a corner. The message was clear: Barca fans saw Figo as a traitor and were irate about his defection to the capital.

According to Tony Jefferies at the Daily Telegraph, the referee suspended play for 13 minutes because he feared for the players' safety.

"I was worried that some madman might lose his head that night," Figo later said, per Sky Sports.

The match ended in a scoreless draw, and Figo remained with Real until 2005.