Police have confirmed that there was "a concrete plan" for an explosion to occur at the HDI Stadium in Hannover where Germany and the Netherlands were due to play a friendly on Tuesday.
Following the tragic events in Paris on Friday night, the match was cancelled shortly before kickoff amid reports that a suspicious suitcase had been found in the stadium.
Further information has suggested that there was a clear plan in place for an explosion to take place at the venue, with Chief Police Officer Volker Kluwe telling local television: "There was a concrete plan for something [to] explode.
"We assume that this threat is serious, and we cannot guess what the attackers will do instead. You do not know what a perpetrator is possibly planning. Do not stay in groups. Find safety."
According to kreiszeitung.de, an ambulance packed full of explosives was found outside the stadium, while a further report from German publication Bild claims that a second venue in Hannover, the TUI-Arena, has also been evacuated before a planned music gig which was due to take place on Tuesday evening.
Sky Sports News are reporting that there is "an immediate threat" and that the terror warning has been extended to all of Hannover.
Top German government officials including Chancellor Angela Merkel had been scheduled to attend the match against the Netherlands, after German players were kept in the Stade de France overnight on Friday following their friendly match with France in Paris.
Tom Nightingale
