FIVE people have died, while around 17 more were injured, following a stampede at a football match in Honduras.

The tragic incident was caused as more fans attempted to find their way into an already packed house at the General Tiburcio Andino National Stadium in the country’s capital of Tegucigalpa for the final of the Clausura tournament between Motagua and Honduras Progreso.

7 An ambulance team in Honduras assist fans as tragedy strikes outside stadium Credit: Getty Images

There was a police presence around 600-strong, and they reacted by using water cannons and tear gas in an effort to restore order.

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But people became angry, before panic ensued and quickly spread.

7 Fans show solidarity after five people died outside stadium before match Credit: Getty Images

7 Security teams assist people inside the stadium following overselling of tickets Credit: Getty Images

7 A man is given mouth-to-mouth resuscitation following tragic incident Credit: Getty Images

7 Staff help man stricken inside stadium during match between Motagua and Honduras Progreso Credit: Getty Images

A spokesman for University Teaching Hospital says the victims died from suffocation and multiple broken bones from being trampled, while an unborn foetus passed away when its mother suffered severe injuries.

A police statement after the contest claimed the event had been oversold.

The stadium has a capacity of around 30,000 and, while it was completely full inside, fans were still outside brandishing tickets.

A hospital spokesman confirmed after the match that two people died in the stadium and two in hospital.

No hay nada que celebrar con lo qué pasó afuera del estadio, los agentes de seguridad recomendaron no cancelar, ya el estadio estaba lleno. — Eduardo Atala (@EduardoAtala1) May 29, 2017

7 Around 600 police were forced to use water canons to calm fans down Credit: Getty Images

7 A man reacts after an stampede at the National Stadium in Tegucigalpa, Honduras Credit: Reuters

Eventually, the game went ahead and Montagua won the contest 3-0 following a minute’s silence before kick-off.

However, club president Eduardo Atala tweeted after the match: “There is nothing to celebrate with what happened outside the stadium.

“The security forced recommended not to cancel as the stadium was already full.”</s>Connect with the definitive source for global and local news

More from AP</s>Four fans lost their lives in a stampede ahead of the Honduran Clausura final between Motagua and Progreso in Tegucigalpa on Sunday.

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The Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino was sold out for the encounter, but Motagua believe capacity may have been breached due to fans gaining entry with forged tickets.

Police took action in an attempt to control the crowd, but chaos ensued and several fans were trampled, with two supporters dying at the stadium and two more passing away after being transported to a local hospital.

Motagua have offered condolences in the wake of the tragic events, but they deny overselling tickets and have vowed to fully cooperate with the investigation.

Getty Getty

Getty Getty

"Motagua would like to offer its condolences to the friends and families of the four persons that tragically lost their lives during the accident before the start of the final. The club also wishes a speedy recovery to all those who suffered injuries," a club statement reads.

"The club categorically denies selling too many tickets. It is important to bear in mind the entire sale process was supervised by Conapid [Honduras' sporting commission].

"Motagua staff were made aware of the existence of false tickets for the game and notified the authorities. Illegal tickets were found in the stadium and passed on to the relevant authorities in order to take measures.

Conmocionado con otra tragedia alrededor del fútbol. Mis pensamientos con las víctimas de #Honduras./ My thoughts are with the victims. — Sergio Ramos (@SergioRamos) May 29, 2017

"Motagua is collaborating with the authorities to investigate the unfortunate events that took place. The club calls for doubling security measures to avoid a repeat in the future."

The game went ahead, despite the incident, with Motagua winning 3-0.

After hearing of the news, Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos expressed his sympathy on social media, tweeting: "Shocked by another tragedy around football. My thoughts are with the victims."</s>An injured man is assisted as a body lies covered at the National Stadium in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Sunday, May 28, 2017. Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and several were killed in the crush and over a dozen others were injured, authorities said.(AP Photo/Fernando Antonio)

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and at least four people and an unborn fetus were killed in the crush and 25 others were injured, authorities said.

A spokesman for University Teaching Hospital told The Associated Press that the victims died from suffocation and multiple broken bones from being trampled. The fetus died when its mother suffered severe injuries, spokesman Miguel Osorio said.

The stampede happened at Gate 11 of the National Stadium in Honduras' capital as fans tried to push their way into the jammed venue to see the game between Motagua and Honduras Progreso, officials said.

A police statement said the match appeared to have been oversold. It said the stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000, was already full while crowds of fans were still outside brandishing tickets. People became angry when they couldn't enter and began forcing their way in, the statement said.

About 600 police officers were guarding the stadium and used water cannon and tear gas trying to push back the crowds.

Motagua won the game 3-0, but club president Eduardo Atala tweeted afterward that "there is nothing to celebrate with what happened outside the stadium."</s>(CNN) It should have been a day of celebration as Motagua were crowned champions in Honduras, but instead it was marred by tragedy.

According to Honduras' national police, four people were killed and several injured in a stampede at the national stadium Sunday prior to the league final between Motagua and Honduras Progreso.

The incident occurred, police say, when a group of fans tried to enter one section of the stadium in a violent manner.

Montagua club president, Pedro Atala, said the incident was caused by false ticket sales and denied his club were responsible for overselling tickets.

"There is a joy that we cannot hide, but we also have mixed feelings," Atala told Honduran TV.

"First and foremost, our deepest condolences to the people who died outside the stadium, due to selling of fake tickets and an increase in the number of fans that the police didn't expect.

"We want to make clear, that at no point was there overselling of tickets. That is easy to prove.

"We are going to try and find the relatives of the victims to help them as best we can."

The match eventually went ahead following a minute's silence, with Montagua winning 3-0.

Atala later tweeted that security officials had recommended the match should not be canceled as the stadium was already full.

Police say they had reinforced security before the match by placing 600 law enforcement officers at the stadium, in the country's capital, Tegucigalpa.

"To ensure order and safety of those attending the sporting event and avoiding violent events, in agreement with the authorities of the National League, it was decided to reinforce the control measures for the entry of fans into the stadium," a statement read.

Police will now investigate the clubs to see if they oversold their tickets.</s>TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) - Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and at least four people and an unborn fetus were killed in the crush and 25 others were injured, authorities said.

A spokesman for University Teaching Hospital told The Associated Press that the victims died from suffocation and multiple broken bones from being trampled. The fetus died when its mother suffered severe injuries, spokesman Miguel Osorio said.

The stampede happened at Gate 11 of the National Stadium in Honduras' capital as fans tried to push their way into the jammed venue to see the game between Motagua and Honduras Progreso, officials said.

An injured man is assisted as a body lies covered at the National Stadium in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Sunday, May 28, 2017. Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and several were killed in the crush and over a dozen others were injured, authorities said.(AP Photo/Fernando Antonio)

A police statement said the match appeared to have been oversold. It said the stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000, was already full while crowds of fans were still outside brandishing tickets. People became angry when they couldn't enter and began forcing their way in, the statement said.

About 600 police officers were guarding the stadium and used water cannon and tear gas trying to push back the crowds.

Motagua won the game 3-0, but club president Eduardo Atala tweeted afterward that "there is nothing to celebrate with what happened outside the stadium."

Bodies lie covered at the National Stadium in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Sunday, May 28, 2017. Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and several were killed in the crush and over a dozen others were injured, authorities said. (AP Photo/Fernando Antonio)

An injured man is assisted after a deadly stampede at the National Stadium in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Sunday, May 28, 2017. Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and several were killed in the crush and over a dozen others were injured, authorities said. (AP Photo/Fernando Antonio)</s>At least four people have died at a stampede during a Honduras league final.

Fans of Motagua were crushed as they faced Honduras Progreso at the 35,000 capacity Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino in the capital Tegucigalpa.

It has been reported that too many tickets had been sold for the match, although Motagua officials deny the accusation.

The club hit back saying that "responsible authorities immediately that fake tickets were being circulated" which "enabled people to enter the stadium illegally to watch the final between Motagua and El Progreso - people who apparently occupied seats that were not theirs, forcing others to leave the area".

Montagua won the game 3-0, to complete a 7-1 aggregate win, to lift the title.

In a statement Motagua said: "Its deepest condolences to the family and friends of the four people who sadly died in the accident at the start of the final" and wished "a speedy recovery to those injured.

"It is important to bear in mind that all the ticket sales are supervised, and in this case approved, by the national commission for sports facilities (Conapid), which is an agency of the Honduras government.

"The club is helping in the investigation into what happened at the stadium, which was under police control - according to the rules - as always 48 hours before any sports event."</s>At least four people and an unborn fetus were killed in a crush, with 25 others injured, as thousands of football fans tried to force their way into the Honduran national stadium for the league final, authorities have said.

A spokesman for University Teaching Hospital said that the victims died from suffocation and multiple broken bones from being trampled.

The fetus died when its mother suffered severe injuries, hospital spokesman Miguel Osorio said.

The stampede happened as police fired tear gas at Gate 11 of Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital, as fans tried to push their way into the jammed venue to watch the game between Motagua and Honduras Progreso, officials said.

A police statement said the match appeared to have been oversold. It said the stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000, was already full while crowds of fans were still outside brandishing tickets.

People became angry when they couldn't enter and began forcing their way in, the statement said.

About 600 police officers were guarding the stadium and used water cannon and tear gas trying to push back the crowds.

Motagua won the game 3-0, but with both clubs, as well as the league, releasing statements afterwards offering their deepest condolences to the families of the bereaved and injured.

The official Motagua statement denied that the club had oversold the game but that fake tickets had allowed other fans to gain entry to the stadium.</s>A tragic stampede ahead of the Clausura final between Motagua and Progreso cost four fans their lives.

Four fans lost their lives in a stampede ahead of the Honduran Clausura final between Motagua and Progreso in Tegucigalpa on Sunday.

The Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino was sold out for the encounter, but Motagua believe capacity may have been breached due fans gaining entry with forged tickets.

Police took action in an attempt to control the crowd, but chaos ensued and several fans were trampled, with two supporters dying at the stadium and two more passing away after being transported to a local hospital.

Motagua have offered condolences in the wake of the tragic events, but they deny overselling tickets and have vowed to fully cooperate with the investigation.

"Motagua would like to offer its condolences to the friends and families of the four persons that tragically lost their lives during the accident before the start of the final. The club also wishes a speedy recovery to all those who suffered injuries," a club statement reads.

"The club categorically denies selling too many tickets. It is important to bear in mind the entire sale process was supervised by Conapid [Honduras' sporting commission].

"Motagua staff were made aware of the existence of false tickets for the game and notified the authorities. Illegal tickets were found in the stadium and passed on to the relevant authorities in order to take measures.

"Motagua is collaborating with the authorities to investigate the unfortunate events that took place. The club calls for doubling security measures to avoid a repeat in the future."

The game went ahead, despite the incident, with Motagua winning 3-0.</s>TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) -- Thousands of soccer fans trying to force their way into a stadium for a championship match stampeded in panic when police fired tear gas Sunday, and at least four people and an unborn fetus were killed in the crush and 25 others were injured, authorities said.

A spokesman for University Teaching Hospital told The Associated Press that the victims died from suffocation and multiple broken bones from being trampled. The fetus died when its mother suffered severe injuries, spokesman Miguel Osorio said.

The stampede happened at Gate 11 of the National Stadium in Honduras' capital as fans tried to push their way into the jammed venue to see the game between Motagua and Honduras Progreso, officials said.

A police statement said the match appeared to have been oversold. It said the stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000, was already full while crowds of fans were still outside brandishing tickets. People became angry when they couldn't enter and began forcing their way in, the statement said.

About 600 police officers were guarding the stadium and used water cannon and tear gas trying to push back the crowds.

Motagua won the game 3-0, but club president Eduardo Atala tweeted afterward that ''there is nothing to celebrate with what happened outside the stadium.''
Four people, including a pregnant woman, are killed and dozens injured when a rush of fans try to enter an already-at-capacity Tiburcio Carías Andino Stadium before the Honduran Clausura final in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Police are investigating possible overselling of tickets.