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Unhappy about hooligans English fans earning reputation as among worst in soccer
Posted: Saturday June 03, 2000 11:22 AM
Back in the 1970s and '80s when I used to go to football matches in England, there was a chant I used to hear on the terraces that some of you may also have heard. "Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough" was the battle cry offered to visiting fans by the rowdier elements of the home crowd, which in short was an invitation to a fight. From time to time that gauntlet would be picked up, with the punch-up and resultant television and newspaper headlines helping to create the enduring image of English football followers as a bunch of mindless hooligans. Despite the vastly improved behavior of the English supporters in general, that reputation still exists today. Indeed, while the hooligan element among followers of Germany, Italy and Holland continues to rival them for notoriety, it's fair, if not diplomatic, to say that England's fans remain among the least welcome at any international soccer tournament.
Such is the case for the upcoming European Championship, where all England games, and particularly the June 17 clash with Germany in Charleroi, have already been earmarked as among the biggest potential flashpoints. The English, as I've said, are not the only nation to attract a hooligan element, and to their credit the police in both host countries, Belgium and the Netherlands, have been in training to deal with trouble with whomever it arises. In fact, the Belgian police in Brussels went so far last week as to stage a mock riot to test their readiness for the potential battles. Some 4,300 personnel were involved in the exercise, with the security forces reportedly armed with riot gear, water cannons and tear gas. All very laudable, except for one thing -- pictures and details of the street "battle" were made available to the media, and through us, to the general public. Now perhaps I'm mistaken here, but doesn't this seem a little odd? Firstly, I may be no military man, but when an army goes on maneuvers in preparation for battle does the general then send the enemy a video tape on his strategy? Does the colonel offer his future adversary a written briefing of where the plans worked and where they failed? Does the major release exact details of his weapons capability? I think not.
Secondly, by inviting the media to publicize the rehearsal, aren't you in effect challenging those people traveling to the championship with a mind to cause trouble? After all, while some football hooliganism is spontaneous, intelligence gathered in the build up to this championship has indicated that some of the potential trouble is being carefully orchestrated. If that's the case, then by showing the enemy what you've got you might actually be appealing to their twisted sense of macho pride by inviting them to beat the system. Granted, after their embarrassing lack of ability to deal with their own domestic football violence that marred the end of the Belgian football season, the local police obviously wanted to mount a display of force and competence. But did they have to do it in so much detail and with so much public bravado?
I'm sure most of those people traveling to the matches, and in particular the hooligans, know what a riot looks like. They've seen the pictures of the real thing. They know the batons and water canons will be out. They've seen the tear gas. I doubt anyone thought the Belgians would be tackling unruly behavior with a persuasive tongue alone, so who was the showboating supposed to dissuade? Of course, it's vitally important for the success of the tournament and the safety of the law-abiding fans who'll come to watch it, that the Dutch and Belgian police forces are prepared for trouble. But I feel in the case of the Belgians, their preparation should have been more private. An unknown quantity is always tougher to deal with than a familiar enemy. And by in effect shouting "Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough" at the opposition, they've at least run the risk of creating a self-fulfilling prophesy. Of course we'll find out in the fullness of time. Terry Baddoo is a co-host of "World Sport," the international sports show that airs live on CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNN International. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.
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