UPDATE: Residents express concerns to Gulfport city leaders over brawl at youth football game

GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) - Tuesday, residents had a chance to express their concerns to Gulfport city leaders about the brawl that broke out at a youth football game Friday night.

Spectators were caught on video fighting in the stands of Milner Stadium.

The mayor expressed his concerns Monday, leaving the future of youth football in question.

Some residents say they want to see action but also don’t want to see youth football go away.

“I think in order to stop this from happening we need to revamp the league for safety,” one resident said at Tuesday’s Gulfport City Council meeting. “In these games, you gotta have tough skin to compete and some of them are fun and back and fourth and we like that competitive spirit, but some of it is overboard.”

“It makes me think or at least ask the question are we in a city where we feel like we can’t provide a safe environment for our kids to have any sports, and I certainly hope the answer to that is no,” another resident said. “I think it has to be no.”

The city is still investigating how the fight broke out, and charges are pending. Mayor Billy Hewes is encouraging anyone who knows anything about the fight to contact Gulfport Police at 228-868=5900.

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