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TV news segment canceled following threats from soccer fan club in Brazil

A Brazilian news team investigating an attack by a soccer fan club on a player found themselves the target of violence by the same club on Oct. 12, reported the sports newspaper UOL Esporte.

Journalist Luiz Ceará, blogger for UOL and reporter for TV Bandeirantes, was preparing to go on air when he was approached by members of Mancha Verde, the fan club for the Palmeiras soccer team in São Paulo. After the incursion, Ceará's segment was canceled.

"The fans said whether or not I said good things or bad things, if I mentioned the Mancha they were going to break every bone in my body," Ceará said, according to the website Futebol Interior.

The Syndicate of Professional Journalists of the State of São Paulo responded to the fan club's hostility, asking the Secretary of Public Security to ensure that the Palmeiras Sports Organization take all necessary steps to guarantee the safety of the professionals covering the Brazilian soccer championship.