A man has been banned from attending football matches for five years after he lit a flare in a stadium.
Owen McAvoy ignited a marine flare under a plastic banner in the stands at Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium during a Stoke City match last year, Cleveland Police said.
McAvoy, 21, from Linthorpe, in Middlesbrough, was issued a banning order at Teesside Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.
PC Chris Hilton said lighting the flare in a crowd of thousands of fans could have led to "mass panic and potential injuries".
McAvoy was arrested following the match on 28 October 2023, police said.