Three fans have been shot outside the Arena das Dunas World Cup stadium in Brazil's latest outbreak of football violence.

Police said the shots were fired by two men on a motorcycle after the Rio Grande do Norte state championship match between America and Santa Cruz on Saturday night.

"We don't have the names of the injured fans but they are in a stable condition with injuries that aren't life threatening," police spokesman Francisco Araujo Silva said. Local authorities appealed to witnesses to contact police in a bid to capture the gunmen.

The Arena das Dunas stadium, in the northeastern city of Natal, will host four matches during the World Cup, to be held from June 12 to July 13 this year.

Sunday's shootings were not the first involving America fans.

In October last year, four America supporters were shot after a match against their local Serie B rivals Ceara.

Violent clashes between fans have also affected Brazil's top division. In December, dozens were injured after a riot during the Campeonato Brasileiro match between Atletico Paranaense and Vasco da Gama in the southern city of Joinville.