10 instances of fan violence in football

“Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I can assure you, it is more serious than that.”-Bill ShanklyThe game of football is one where emotions reign supreme. More than the players on the pitch, the fans in the stands bear testimony to this fact. And like often when emotions run high, common sense and rationality take the backseat.Since its inception, fan violence and hooliganism have almost been an intrinsic aspect of the game of football. Often rivalries between clubs and countries have spilled onto the stands with fans of different teams attacking each other. More often than not, this has resulted in cataclysmic consequences with people, players and officials getting severely injured or losing their lives.Here’s looking at some of the most tragic instances of fan violence in the history of football.

#1 Kenilworth Road Tragedy

This riot dates to back 13th March 1985 when Milwall faced Luton Town in a sixth round FA Cup clash. Trouble here began much before the game. With the Millwall fans not getting a large proportion of the tickets, they began to riot.

Prior to kickoff, the away fans in hoards began to fill the Kenilworth Stand which was reserved for them. Fans were seen scaling the fences and rushing towards the ground. When the players came out to warm up, missiles in the form of bottles were thrown at them.

The game eventually began with the police sorting things out but that did not last long. Inside 14 minutes, the away fans began to riot again and the match was stopped for quite some time. The game however resumed and it ended with Luton Town registering a 1-0 win. Soon after the game though, fans of both sides rushed out onto the pitch and a brawl broke out. 81 people were injured which included 31 policemen.

The events led to Luton Town banning away supporters for four years and also an expulsion from the tournament.

#2 The Turkish Riots

With emotions among the fans running high, this incident cast a huge shadow over Turkish football. What was supposed to be Turkish league title decider between giants Fenerbahce and Galatasaray in May 2012, took the shape of a battle bwteen the fans and the police.

Following the 0-0 draw that enabled Galatsaray to clinch the league title, Fenerbahce fans broke plastic chairs and threw them at the players and the police along with flares. Police used pepper sprays to disperse the crowds as players made their way to the changing rooms.

The violence then made its way to the streets with rioters overturning rubbish bns and smashing shop windows leaving nearby streets filled with debris. In another part of the country, Fenerbahce fans also stabbed a man wearing a Galatasaray t-shirt.

Surprisingly though, official reports made no mention of major injuries or casualties.

#3 Stadio Olimpico Disaster

Italy has seen its fair share of fan violence and hooliganism. The Ultras have always been known to stir up trouble. English side Manchester United witnessed that in a Champions League game at the Stadio Olimpico against AS Roma in 2007.

Before the game, the police were only present in the United supporters end. This proved to be a costly error as some Roma fans began to hurl missiles at the United supporters. The United fans reportedly pushed the stewards around and that made things worse. They accused the police of handing out indiscriminate beating. A total of 15 supporters were injured with 11 belonging to the away side and the rest to the home team.

Manchester United players did not take too kindly to the treatment meted out their fans. In the return fixture at Old Trafford, Cristiano Ronaldo and company thrashed AS Roma 7-1.

#4 Puera 12 Tragedy

On June 23, 1968, after a match between River Plate and Boca Juniors, 71 fans were killed in a stampede and another 150 were injured. This disaster is possibly the worst football related incident in Argentina.

The clash between the likes of River Plate and Boca Juniors traditionally had the tendency to flare up and that is what happened on that tragic day. As per various claims, just after River’s 3-1 win, Boca fans threw burning flags from the top tier of the stadium causing a stampede of their own fans in the lower tier.

Other sources claim that the unfortunate stampede took place after River fans arrived at the Boca section and thereafter trouble ensued. Many claim that with gate number 12 being locked, fans could not leave the stadium and that eventually cost their lives.

Since the tragedy, the gates at the El Monumental (River’s home), have been identified by letters instead of numbers. Unfortunately for the families of the victims, three years of government investigation found no one guilty.

#5 Trouble at the Salt Lake Stadium

Much like their foreign counterparts, football fans in India also have the tendency to take matters into their own hands when things don’t go to their liking. In the past, especially in the previous century, matches between the Kolkata giants East Bengal and Mohun Bagan has often witnessed crowd trouble and violence.

In December 2012, East Bengal faced Mohun Bagan at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan. The game had begun nicely but all that changed right before halftime. Mohun Bagan striker and captain Odafa Okolie was shown a red card for a rash challenge on the opposition player. It also appeared that Odafa had muttered something to the referee.

With their marquee man out of the game, Bagan fans took matters into their own hands. A slab of concrete thrown from the gallery which was meant for the referee hit Bagan’s Syed Rahim Nabi instead.

Almost immediately, the versatile footballer was carried off the field by East Bengal players while he continued to bleed. With the Bagan fans having injured their own player; the East Bengal fans jeered them and this resulted in an all out brawl between the fans of both sides. Bottles, flags and stones were used as weapons. Police eventually had to lathi charge the spectators and many were injured.

#6 Greeks torch the stadium

In Greece, matches between Olympiacos and Panathinaikos have always been feisty affairs. And this time it was no different except that things got way out of control.

Serious disturbances broke out in March 2012 when the two sides met. Many fans entered the stadium without tickets and brought with them an amazing arsenal which included clubs, metal rods, petrol bombs and flares.

Trouble broke out soon after the away side had taken the lead. No sooner had the trouble died down than the bombs were sighted. The match was immediately called off following which fans set the seats on fire before igniting the stadium’s electronic scoreboard. Outside the stadium, worse things happened.

Twenty police officers were injured in a bid to control things and more than fifty arrests were made. Panathinaikos soon faced sanctions as they were instructed to play the next four home games behind closed doors and were also docked five points.

#7 Riots in Egypt

Amidst all the political turmoil in Egypt in 2012, a massive riot took place at the Port Said stadium in the country following a game between Al Massry and Al Ahly. After a 3-1 victory for Masry, a large number of their fans entered the stadium with weapons such as stones, knives, bottles and fireworks in order to attack the Al Ahly supporters.

There were suspected rumours of political involvement which seemed to have triggered this event. Even the Al Ahly coach, Manuel Jose, was under the same impression as he referred to the event as an “orchestrated massacre”.

The violence and the attacks claimed 79 lives. Majority of these people were stabbed while some were deliberately thrown from the stands.

A total of 73 defendants were charged after an investigation by the government. This included nine police officers and two officials from the Al Masry club. The Egyptian government consequently shut down the domestic league for two years which had an adverse impact on the country’s national team.

#8 The riot that stopped a season

In 2008, Uruguay’s national league was suspended after a mass riot between Danubio and Nacional fans. The trouble erupted after Danubio beat Nacional 1-0 to leapfrog their opponents at the top of the table.

Immediately after the final whistle, the traveling Nacional fans broke down the fencing and invaded the pitch. All hell broke loose when the away fans managed to seize a Danubio flag from the home fans, forcing a reprisal from the locals who also invaded the pitch as a massive fist fight ensued. Such was the intensity of the battle that both sets of fans attacked each other with iron bars and used the corner flags as weapons.

As per official reports, there were no injuries but as is most often the case, official reports don’t always bring out the whole story. The tragic outcome of this was the league was suspended for the season. The football lovers in Uruguay paid the price for the actions of some fans.

#9 Disgrace of Basel

FC Basel and FC Zurich were involved in a championship decider at St.Jakob Park on May 13, 2006. Basel needed a point to clinch the title while Zurich had to win. The visitors went on to win the game 2-1 thanks to an injury time goal which meant that they were going to be crowned Swiss Super League champions.

However, half a minute after the final whistle had been blown, Basel supporters invaded the pitch and started attacking the Zurich players and officials who were desperately trying to run towards their dressing room. In the meantime, Zurich supporters also entered the pitch and all out brawl ensued.

One of the Zurich players had a flare thrown at him but it fortunately missed him. Fights between the Basel hooligans and the police continued outside the stadium. Although there was no official figure, many people were injured and thereafter hospitalized.

Often known as the “Disgrace of Basel”, this incident is said to have been one of the worst cases of football violence in Switzerland.

#10 Heysel Tragedy

A European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus brought much promise and excitement but was marred by some tragic scenes in the stands. A combination of poor stadium infrastructure, inadequate segregation and inexperienced handling led to the death of as many as 39 supporters with 600 people suffering injuries.

The trouble began before kickoff when a large group of Liverpool fans breached a fence separating them from a “neutral area” which contained mostly Juve fans. The latter ran back onto the terraces and away from the threat into a concrete retaining wall. Fans already standing near the wall were crushed and eventually the wall collapsed. While some climbed over to safety, many others died or were badly injured. The game was played in order to prevent further violence with Juventus running out 1-0 winners.

The tragedy resulted in English clubs facing sanctions. All English clubs were indefinitely banned from European competitions(lifted in 1990-91) with Liverpool serving an additional three year ban. Fourteen Liverpool fans were found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.