A European Championship 2016 football qualifier between Serbia and Albania has been abandoned after a player brawl.

Pictures: Sky Sports

Players began fighting after a drone carrying an Albanian flag flew into the stadium before Stefan Mitrovic of Serbia tore it down.

The Group I game erupted into controversy shortly before half-time in Belgrade when the drone, apparently flown in by remote control from fans outside the stadium, was brought down by a couple of Serbia players, with members of the Albania team attempting to intercept their national flag.

Police respond to crowd disturbance. Credit: Reuters

That prompted a melee involving numerous players and forced English referee Martin Atkinson to lead the players off the field, after some disruption off the pitch as well.

Fans of Serbia burn a NATO flag. Credit: Reuters//Marko Djurica

There were no signs of play being restarted more than half an hour after the suspension, with UEFA then confirming the match had been abandoned.