Referee dishes out 17 red cards as mass brawl mars Copa Bolivia match

A scuffle has erupted involving Blooming players and Oruro stars Zeballos and Vila

A Copa Bolivia quarter-final between Club Blooming and Real Oruro descended into chaos, with the referee dishing out a staggering 17 red cards, including 16 following a massive brawl that required police intervention with pepper spray.

The fracas began with what Bolivian outlet El Potosi described as a scuffle involving some Blooming players and Oruro's Sebastian Zeballos and Julio Vila.

The altercation quickly spiralled as punches and kicks broke out in a frenzy, with both clubs' staff, including Oruro coach Marcelo Robledo, also getting involved.

Oruro posted a picture on Instagram showing Robledo in hospital after Tuesday's brawl, which resulted in four of their players receiving red cards. Blooming fared even worse in the disciplinary stakes, with seven players sent off – six of those red cards coming after the brawl. The other six red cards were given to the teams' backroom staff, including the Oruro coach.

On Friday, Blooming shared an Instagram video saying a member of their security staff had undergone surgery for a fractured cheekbone sustained during the violence.

Blooming advanced to the semi-finals after winning the tie 4-3 on aggregate, having taken a 2-1 advantage from the first leg. They will now face Club Bolivar, last year's Bolivian top-flight champions, in the semi-finals.