Police do not think the brutal murders are football-related but - to the surprise of many - Sunday's derby game against Palmeiras will go ahead

Eight Corinthians fans were murdered as part of an armed attack against a fan headquarters on Saturday.

It is the fourth murder incident recorded in Sao Paulo in the past few weeks but the first with a strong link to football, as all eight people were shot at the headquarters of Corinthians fan group Pavilhao Nove.

Police confirmed to Brazilian outlet Folha de Sao Paulo that witnesses reported two armed men bursting into the vicinity shortly before midnight and forcing people to lie face-down on the ground.

They then shot seven of the unarmed football fans in the head, killing them immediately, while the eighth victim escaped to the street after being shot but later died at the university's hospital.

The deaths are being investigated as murders by police, who ruled out any suggestions that Sunday's derby game between Corinthians and Palmeiras had anything to do with the attack and instead suggested a drug trafficking row is responsible.

Corinthians football club released an image on Twitter of the word 'Luto' which translates from Portuguese as 'mourning'.

Surprisingly, however, Brazilian football authorities are refusing to suspend Sunday's Campeonato Paulista semi-final - the culmination of a 20-team state-wide tournament - between the Sao Paulo teams.

Corinthians fan group Pavilhao Nove, who are yet to release a statement on their social media outlets following the murders, were founded in 1990.