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Britain unlikely to pay France for rioting
Posted: Sunday July 12, 1998 11:00 PM
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Hooligans caused problems before England's opening match in Marseilles (AP) |
LONDON (AP) -- Britain was "unlikely" to compensate France for the
costs of policing English fans at the soccer World Cup, Sports Minister
Tony Banks told BBC radio on Sunday. Banks -- who went to France on
Friday to formally apologize for the actions of English soccer hooligans
during the tournament -- said it was not customary for one government to
pay the policing costs incurred in another country. "We don't do it,
and it's most unlikely that we will," he said. However, Banks did
say "we have some way to go to atone for what happened." English
soccer hooligans were universally condemned for their involvement in
rioting before and after England's World
Cup opening match against Tunisia at
Marseille. Three days of violence and rioting by English fans around
the match at the Stade Velodrome resulted in almost 100 arrests and left
more than 50 people with injuries. English fans were also involved
in violence at England's other World Cup venues in Toulouse, Lens and Saint
Etienne. However, tighter security measures including alcohol bans
prevented a repeat of the large-scale riots in Marseille in early June.
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