Thug carrying a young child storms onto the pitch to attack a player at Brazilian football match

A thug stormed onto the pitch on Sunday to kick a player at the end of a dramatic Brazilian football match – while carrying a young child in his arms.

The brutal attack was captured by television cameras after a massive brawl broke out at the end of the match between Internacional and Caxias.

Caxias, a team based in Caxias do Sul in southern Brazil, had just beaten Internacional from Porto Alegre on penalties – leading to the scandalous scenes.

As the Caxias player shot the ball past the goalkeeper and celebrated the winner by holding his hands to his ears, the footage shows the Estadio Beira-Rio – Internacional’s home stadium – erupting in anger.

Internacional players and team staff chase the Caxias players across the field, encouraged by their barking home supporters, as stewards meekly try to bring the escalating situation under control.

Pictured: The football fan is dragged off the field by stewards while carrying a young girl in his arms, after kicking a player between the legs

Several clashes between the rival players and staff break out across the pitch and sideline, with punches and kicks flying in from all directions.

A number of players from both teams are brought to the ground.

As the cameras zoom in on a certain flash point, a fan is seen carrying a young girl – presumably his daughter – onto the field, wading into the fray with seemingly little regard for the child’s safety.

While stewards try to stop him, the Internacional fan runs after a Caxias player who looks the other way.

The player helps another who is seen holding his face, his nose visibly injured during the mass brawl.

Suddenly, the enraged thug shoots up powerfully between the other player’s legs.

Two of the Caxias player’s teammates rush to his defense, but soon realize the man is carrying the young girl – and hesitate, seemingly out of confusion.

One of the players tries to warn the other angry teammates about the young girl, and the trio are able to stop themselves from going after the thug.

The footage cuts to another camera on the field, which zooms in on the man’s face.

With a furious look in his eyes, he is dragged away by three stewards.

The young girl is visibly terrified as she is tossed around, while the man is pulled back to the stand from which he first came.

While stewards try to stop him, the Internacional fan runs after a Caxias player who was looking the other way. He then violently kicks up between the player’s legs

Pictured: Teammates of the player who was kicked rush in to defend him, only to realize that the attacker is carrying a young girl in his arms

Pictured: The young girl is visibly terrified as she is beaten, as the man is pulled back to the stands from which he first came

The mass brawl was a bitter end to the game which also saw a red card and ended 1-1, before being decided by a penalty shootout.

The match was a fixture in the Campeonato Gaúcho, the state football league of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul – which is separate from the Brazilian Série A – the country’s top division in which Internacional also participates.

Last season, Internacional finished second in Serie A, suggesting Caxias were the underdog in the hotly contested competition. Nevertheless, Caxias came out on top and will be in the final of Campeonato Gaúcho next week.

The incident was not the first time an Internacional fan has been involved in a violent incident. In February last year, a footballer from Gremio – a fierce rival of Internacional – was taken to hospital after being hit on the head by a stone.