Drone halts Fleetwood v Arsenal Carabao Cup tie for about eight minutes

What happened

A drone hovering above Highbury Stadium halted the Carabao Cup fourth-round tie between Fleetwood Town and Arsenal on Tuesday, 27 October, less than two minutes after kick-off. Fleetwood are a League Two side, the fourth tier of English football, and they were the home team that night. Referee Michael Salisbury spotted the aircraft just as Arsenal were about to take a free kick, and he stopped play with the score still 0-0. Some supporters in the home end jeered the interruption while the players waited to see whether the drone would leave.

The stoppage

Salisbury walked to the touchline to speak with the stadium safety officer and both managers before making clear that the players would have to leave the pitch. For roughly five minutes, the players stayed on the grass and passed the ball among themselves to keep warm. When the drone was still in view after that stretch, LBC reported that Salisbury sent the players to the dressing rooms, while the Evening Standard said they stayed on the touchline instead. The drone then disappeared from view, and LBC reported that police identified its operator, which allowed the referee to restart the game.

Accounts of the length of the delay differ. Most English-language reports put it at around eight minutes, with AP describing nearly eight minutes, the New York Times over eight minutes, and LBC around nine minutes, while a Greek report from iefimerida.gr gave 5.5 minutes.

Football Association guidance

The Football Association publishes guidance telling referees to stop a match when a drone is sighted above a pitch, and to tell both captains and managers that play will not continue until the aircraft has moved on or left the area around players and spectators. Where the drone is not leaving, referees should take both teams back to the changing rooms if the ground allows, and at open sites such as public parks they keep waiting until it departs. The guidance also advises the referee to consult the home team's safety officer. The sequence Salisbury followed, as the reports describe it, matches those steps closely. The Independent reported that Fleetwood did not recognise the drone and called it unauthorised.

Context around the tie

Arsenal's line-up drew attention because Mikel Arteta rested many of his first-team regulars and named fringe players alongside teenagers, according to the Evening Standard. Max Dowman, Marli Salmon and Ceadach O'Neill were among the starters, and O'Neill was making his senior debut on the left wing. The day before, on Monday, 26 October, Arteta attended the Ballon d'Or ceremony in London, which was delayed by 45 minutes because of traffic in central London. Gabriel, Bukayo Saka and David Raya were also at the London Palladium but are not in the matchday squad. LBC noted that this is the furthest Fleetwood have ever progressed in the League Cup, during their 15-year history as a league club.