The Båstad riots ( sv, Båstadskravallerna) is the name given to the riots that took place during a Davis Cup tennis match between Sweden and Rhodesia on May 3, 1968 in Båstad, Sweden. Demonstrators were protesting the participation of the two

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

countries, Rhodesia and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

, in the international tennis competition. The countries were barred from other international sporting events. It became the most violent confrontation between the

Swedish police The Swedish Police Authority ( sv, Polismyndigheten) is the national police force (''Polisen'') of the Kingdom of Sweden. The first modern police force in Sweden was established in the mid-19th century, and the police remained in effect under lo ...

and demonstrators during the 1960s. It was followed by a dialogue between the Swedish government and the demonstrators to curb the escalation of violence. The match later was played in secrecy, and Sweden won 4-1.

References

1968 Davis Cup 1968 in Sweden 1968 riots 1968 in tennis Riots and civil disorder in Sweden Sports riots Politics and sports Sport in Rhodesia May 1968 events in Europe Foreign relations of Rhodesia 1968 in Swedish tennis {{Rhodesia-stub