Fighting the thugs

Repression is the solution to soccer violence

Ten days ago, Torino fans went on the rampage during a match against AC Milan and forced the referee to abandon the game.

Last Saturday, Paris St. Germain supporters insulted and manhandled Ronaldinho after PSG¹s 4-2 win over Troyes.

And, on Monday, thirty-two fans were arrested following the Birmingham derby, after City beat Aston Villa, 2-0.

Every once in a while fan violence rears its ugly head and, with alarming punctuality, the pseudo-sociologists emerge from the shadows and dole out blame.

Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf took aim at club chairmen and managers, suggesting that their complaints about refereeing errors inflame the world of soccer and cause fans to lose control.

Italian league chairman (and Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani ) blamed the media -- newspapers, radio and television -- for creating a "hostile, confrontational climate".

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And, in England, the police are saying that the actions of some players -- such as Villa's Dion Dublin, who headbutted Birmingham¹s Robbie Savage -- aggravated the situation in an already tense derby leading to the crowd trouble afterwards.

All these people -- well-intentioned though they may be -- are missing the point.

A normal person does not throw a cinder block at a cop or set a car on fire because of what he or she reads in the newspaper, or what a coach says, or what players do to each other on the pitch.

These young men (and it usually is young men) do what they do because they find that challenging authority, causing mayhem and having a punch-up is, well, fun. It¹s been that way since Cain smacked Abel upside the head.

For whatever reason, some people love smashing things up and engaging in criminal behavior... as long as they think they can get away with it.

The same behavior occurs on subway trains, university campuses, bars and night clubs. Blame society if you like, but don't blame soccer or those around it.

How do you solve the problem?

Easy: repression. Have cops on hand to throw people in prison and, once there, ensure there are enforceable laws which keep them there long enough to serve as a deterrent.

English stadiums and policing are usually held up as the models to follow in eradicating soccer-related violence. But it¹s not as if they eliminated violence from society altogether -- as evidenced by what happens all too often when English fans go abroad -- they simply stamped it out at the grounds.

Go to an English stadium and you¹ve got stewards and cameras following you everywhere, from the burger stand to the toilets. Any obvious displays of foul language (let alone foul behavior) will get you ejected, possibly banned or arrested.

That's the blueprint to fight violence in the sport.

Police the grounds, so families will feel safe, so normal people don't have to worry about a motor scooters falling on their heads (as happened in Milan¹s San Siro last year), so players aren't threatened by lunatics who run on to the pitch and slap them around (as happened to Aston Villa goalkeeper Peter Enckelman last fall).

Leave the philosophical musings on the failings of our society to control teen angst, vandalism and anti-social behavior to the sociologists and politicians.

It's not soccer's job to solve those problems. The sport should simply focus on maintaining efficient, clean and, above all, safe venues.

GOOD WEEK/BAD WEEK

GOOD WEEK: Raul, who scored two goals in Real Madrid's 5-1 hammering of Alaves to become the club¹s fourth all-time scorer. Given the fact that he is just 25, it looks likely that he will surpass the legendary Alfredo Di Stefano, the club¹s number one, shortly after his 30th birthday. Just another accolade for a star who remains one of the most underrated players around.

BAD WEEK: Ariel Ortega, who was slapped with a FIFA ban for walking out on Fenerbache and refusing to return any of the US$3 million signing bonus he received.

GOOD WEEK: Liverpool, who won the League Cup, beating Manchester United 2-0 in the final. The Worthington Cup may be just a bauble, but it's a welcome sign of relief for embattled Gerard Houllier.

BAD WEEK: Inter Milan, who was spanked 3-0 by Juventus in their top-of-the-table Serie A clash. Hector Cuper's men were simply outfought and outhustled by an aggressive and efficient Juve side.

 

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