Grim images captured the moment a sense of terror spread among thousands of Swedish football fans when they learned two of their compatriots had been killed in a brutal terrorist attack.

Fans were seen breaking down in tears and hugging each other while others frantically took out their phones to call friends and family, fearing they had been targeted.

Others put their heads in their hands, while some supporters looked on with blank expressions, seemingly unable to comprehend what they were hearing.

Some 35,000 Swedish and Belgian supporters gathered on Monday evening at the King Baudouin stadium in Brussels to watch the Euro 2024 qualifying match between their respective teams.

But the excited atmosphere on the field quickly turned into distress and anxiety. Swedes in the stands glanced at their phones to discover that two fans had been shot dead in the Belgian capital shortly before kick-off.

At halftime, fans received even more disturbing news: They would be locked inside the stadium indefinitely while Belgian police tracked down the terrorist suspect and confirmed that no more attacks were coming.

The match was quickly halted at halftime with the score at 1-1, while stadium staff locked down all entrances to the pitch.

Supporters, players and staff members were not allowed to leave until 4 a.m. while Belgian police ensured there were no further threats.

It comes as the Swedish Football Association’s security chief said he had considered advising fans not to wear their yellow jerseys in Brussels due to fears of a possible terrorist attack, but opted instead not to do so after Belgian officials told him there was no increased threat level.

Swedish fans react as they wait in the stand during the Euro 2024 qualifying soccer match between Belgium and Sweden after learning that two people had been killed in a terrorist attack.

Swedish fans react at halftime as the UEFA EURO 2024 European qualifying match between Belgium and Sweden is abandoned at the King Baudouin Stadium on October 16, 2023 in Brussels, Belgium.

A fan makes a phone call as she waits in the stand during the Euro 2024 qualifying soccer match between Belgium and Sweden at the King Baudouin stadium in Brussels on October 16, 2023, after an attack that targeted Swedish citizens in a street in Brussels.

Swedish fans wait in the stands after the suspension of the Euro 2024 Group F qualifying soccer match between Belgium and Sweden at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels.

Swedish fans react at halftime as the UEFA EURO 2024 European qualifying match between Belgium and Sweden is abandoned at the King Baudouin Stadium on October 16, 2023 in Brussels, Belgium.

Martin Fredman said the decision on whether to encourage fans not to wear the Swedish national team jersey “is always included in the risk analysis we carry out before away matches”.

“It’s about how our teams and fans should be dressed, what the bus should look like, etc.,” he told Swedish newspaper Expressen.

After a high school teacher was stabbed to death by an Islamic extremist on Friday, Fredman said: “I contacted the Belgian police and asked for feedback in case of a possible change in the threat picture.

“The response was that the event did not affect the threat level in Belgium.

“In this situation, we have chosen not to issue any recommendations other than those issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding travel to Belgium.

“It’s hard to think about it (after the attack),” the security chief said.

The suspect in the shooting was shot dead by police on Tuesday morning, Belgian Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden said, and the weapon believed to have been used by the man was found.

Swedish Football Association officials said that information about the shooting had reached them just before the start of the match and that Belgian authorities and police considered that the match should go ahead because the stadium was considered the venue safest for Swedish fans.

Officials decided to stop the game at halftime, but keeping fans cooped up inside the stadium was deemed the best decision.

It was around 4 a.m. local time when the last Swedish fans – numbering around 650, according to the Swedish Football Association – left the stadium under police guard, along with some federation staff.

All hotels where Swedish fans were staying were also guarded by police, the federation said.

What was supposed to be a joyous night turned into a night of deep despair

Swedish fans were welcomed by the players and technical staff inside the stadium

Belgian defender Debast Zeno (left) searched for his family members in the crowd

The video shows Abdesalem Lassoued wearing a fluorescent orange jacket and carrying a gun walking through the streets of Brussels last night.

The Swedish players returned to their clubs today after taking a night flight from Brussels following the suspension of the match.

The team went straight to the airport and returned to Sweden once they were allowed to leave the King Baudouin Stadium in the early hours of this morning.

The Belgian team said they were “still devastated” by what happened.

“We would like to thank all the supporters present in the stadium for their understanding and support in these difficult circumstances,” the Belgian Red Devils said on social media. “Our hearts go out to the Swedes, we hope everyone returns home safe and sound.”

“Frustrated, confused, scared. I think everyone was very scared,” said Caroline Lochs, a fan from Antwerp.

Belgian international Thomas Meunier, who did not play on Monday, shared his thoughts after the match.

“Let us say a prayer for the victims and those seriously influenced by the wrong teaching of a religion. May God help them find the right path,” Meunier wrote on social media.

The mayor of Brussels, Philippe Close, also told La Première radio that the match was not considered a high-risk match.

Sweden raised its terror alert level to the second highest in August after a series of public burnings of the Quran by an Iraqi refugee living in Sweden sparked threats from Islamist militant groups.

“We were alerted to the Middle East context, but not to the Korans being burned,” Close said. “Objectively speaking, we have to admit it.”