#1

T he phrase “The Beautiful Game” is a synonym

for Association Football. The origin or individual who coined the phrase is unknown and it is difficult to verify. Football c o m m e n t a t o r Stuart Hall is the only individual to have claimed to have created “The Beautiful Game”. In his youth, Hall admired Peter Doherty when he went to see Manchester City play

at Maine Road and used the term “The Beautiful Game” to describe Doherty’s style when playing. Consequently, he used the term “The Beautiful Game” in his commentary career later on in life which popularised the phrase. The exact origins of the term are disputed. Valdir Pereira, a Brazilian footballer, is thought to have coined the phrase. Earlier writers used the term

the passion on and

off the pitch, is

unrivalled by any

other sport.

PASSION AND CELEBRATATION

Football is associated with passion, emotion,

excitement and dedication across Europe. References to extreme emotional experiences at football games characterised all aspects of discussions with fans — some referring to the ‘pure joy’ and exhilaration of being at football games. Such is the intensity of the experience that two thirds of fans have cried at football matches — mostly through joy, but occasionally because of despair. Football provides for many fans an opportunity to let themselves go emotionally — to release the frustrations of everyday life.

the life of a die hard football fan

T o be a ‘true’ fan requires the ‘living’

experience of football. It is not about being a mere spectator — it is about being a participant. Match attendance is a given, of course, but there is also a duty to engage emotionally in the life of the team in order to impact positively on a team’s performance. Attending away games is an important ritual for fans involving a number of psychological and logistical challenges. Away supporters are always out-numbered and mostly out-sung. In our discussions with fans there was a defiant stance against ‘fair-

weather supporters’ — those who only attend matches occasionally or when their team is doing well. Such fans lack dedication and resilience and the detailed knowledge of team statistics, standings, players and history that is characteristic of ‘true’ fans. Football fandom is seen as a rite of passage involving a process akin to apprenticeship. It involves years of instruction, of ‘practice’, of dedication and of demonstrating your own knowledge in the presence of others before being accepted by ‘real’ fans.

“My life is consumed

by football. I live for

the weekend when i

can go to the football

and support the team i

love”

The feeling of being in a packed ground and the ups and downs of a game are unbelivable.Football fans describe themselves as the ‘twelfth man’ — as essential to the success of the team as the players and coaching staff. It is the actions performed by fans during the game — the ritual chants, songs, banner waving, etc. — that motivates the team, intimidates the opposition players and perhaps even influences referees’ decisions. The fans truly believe they

must attend the game to ‘help the team to win’, not just to observe the event. In addition to the actions performed in the stadiums during the match, pre- and post-game rituals are important in creating a sense of community among fans. From meeting up with other fans for a drink before and after the game to the orchestrated coordination of fabric squares to make up a larger banner, rituals foster a strong sense of belonging to the fan group.

Football hooliganism has no specific legal definition. The term was created by the media, the tabloid press in particular, in the mid-1960s

and since then they have been extremely flexible and indeterminate in ascribing the “hooligan” label to different incidents. Football hooliganism is seen by most to mean violence and/or disorder involving football fans. However there are two very specific ‘types’ of disorder that have been labelled ‘hooliganism’: (a) Spontaneous and usually low level disorder caused by fans at or around football matches (the type that typically occurs at England away matches), and (b) Deliberate and intentional violence involving organised gangs (or ‘firms’) who attach themselves to football clubs and fight firms from other clubs, sometimes a long way in time and space from a match.

Football and fighting go hand in hand.

Traditionally, football hooliganism has been seen as first occurring in the late 1960’s, and peaking in the late 1970’s and mid 1980’s before calming down following the Heysel and Hillsborough disasters. However, incidents of crowd disorder at football matches have been recorded as early as the 19th Century. During a match in 1846 in Derby the riot act was read and two troops of dragoons called in to deal with a disorderly crowd, whilst pitch invasions became increasingly common from the 1880’s onwards. The paucity of accurate figures, official or otherwise, makes it difficult to gauge the frequency and severity of such episodes. The picture is clouded further by the prevalent leniency given at the time toward crowd disturbances that didn’t actually interfere with the

game. It is often claimed that hooliganism at football matches became much more prevalent in the 1970’s and 1980’s, with more reported wide-scale violence at matches. However, again it is difficult to know whether the amount of disorder increased or whether the growing media interest in, and coverage of, crowd disorder has meant it is reported far more regularly. Certainly analysis of certain incidents of disorder (e.g. Sweden v England, Sept. 1989) reveals substantial and irresponsible exaggeration of violence involving supporters by both tabloid and broadsheet press. The issue of the media’s coverage of football hooliganism is very important as it is the media that helped construct the public’s understanding and view of the phenomenon. Within Britain the tabloid press

style of reporting has developed over the past 50 years sparked by the moral panic of the 1950’s at the rise of juvenile crime and delinquency. Some argue that the tabloids’ style of reporting, such as the publishing of league tables of hooligan notoriety.

in particular have found hooliganism to be an easy target for the kind of sensationalist reporting that boosts their circulation. This sensationalist style of reporting often relies on powerful headlines grounded in violent imagery and war metaphors whilst articles are regularly ‘edited for impact’. This

Football hooliganism domestically has changed significantly since the Taylor Report of 1990. All-seater stadiums, ‘Football Intelligence’ and Closed Circuit Television in particular have meant that incidents of violence inside football grounds (particularly in the Premiership) are rare. In addition, arrests for football-related crimes have reduced dramatically since the late 1980’s whilst attendances have risen. However, this does not mean that football hooliganism has necessarily reduced. Much football disorder has been ‘pushed’ from the stadium itself to

other meeting places, with groups needing to be better organised. It also now has the potential to be more violent. The location of most serious disorder means that violence is rarely reported and that the Police will be less able to control it and make arrests. As stated above, there are two different phenomena that have been labelled ‘hooliganism’. First is the spontaneous and usually low-level disorder that takes place in and around stadia and when English teams travel abroad. In the UK, this is relatively rare considering the number of supporters attending matches.

football hooliganism now

G.B.