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Published 10:42 IST, June 25th 2020

Leeds United rocked after Osama bin Laden cutout appears in the stadium, fans angry

Championship club Leeds United were forced into action after a cutout of Osama bin Laden was spotted at Elland Road among cutouts of other fans on Wednesday.

Reported by: Sujay Chakraborty
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Championship club Leeds United were forced into action after a cutout of former Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden appeared in the stadium crowd on Wednesday. With fans not allowed in the stadium due to the coronavirus pandemic, Leeds United were the latest club to use cardboard cutouts of fans in the stadium, to restore some normalcy their matches. The club charged £25 from fans for the privilege to have their 'crowdie' in the stadium, with around 15,000 crowdies expected for each of Leeds' remaining Championship games. 

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Osama bin Laden cut out spotted at Elland Road

One fan went out of his was to prank the club after the picture of Osama bin Laden was spotted among the other cutouts ahead of Leeds match against Fulham. The controversial cutout was spotted by Leeds United fans on Twitter when a user named 'WeAllLoveLeeds' pointed out the cutout of Osama bin Laden, which was placed right next to a cutout of himself. The user said, he was expecting a cutout of his son but was taken aback when he saw the picture. 

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Leeds United fans react to Osama bin Laden cut out placed in the stadium

Unsurprisingly, Leeds United and Osama bin Laden were quite the trend on social media on Wednesday. 

Some fans were quick to note that Osama bin Laden was known to be a fan of Premier League side Arsenal:

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Others pointed out a cutout of British political leader Dominic Cummings, which was spotted at a rugby match in Australia last month.

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The club has since taken the cutout down. Per reports, Leeds United have also confirmed that the club staff will make sure that no other offensive images are being used and submission from fans will be thoroughly checked thereafter. A spokesman for Leeds confirmed, 'checks are in place to ensure there are no more offensive images' in the stadium. 

Leeds United fixtures, Championship standings

Leeds United - second in Championship - will be hosting Fulham on Saturday, June 27. The Yorkshire club lost to Cardiff City in their previous Championship game. Tied on 71 points with first-placed West Bromwich Albion, Leeds will be hoping to secure their top-two berth on Saturday. Fulham (3rd) have 64 points after 38 matches. 

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[Image Credits: WeAllLoveLeeds (Leeds United fan) Twitter Handle]

10:42 IST, June 25th 2020