Hooliganism in Football - Is It in Decline in England?

[pic 1]

School of: SPORTS, HEALTH AND SOCIAL SCIENCE

INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH AND STUDY SKILLS

Unit code: LEI453

Student ID no: Q12118575

Course:  FOOTBALL STUDIES WITH BUSINESS.

Seminar tutor: GRAHAM DAVIES

                        HOOLIGANISM IN FOOTBALL -

                                         Is it in decline in England?

Sports spectator behaviour has been for many years a major cause for concern, not only in the UK but also throughout Europe. Violent supporter behaviour has been labelled as “football hooliganism” and is sometimes referred to as “the English disease”. These populist terms have been used by the media and be politicians to label the behaviours of English football from the 1960’s (Dunning 2000). Hooligan attacks were usually made against rival hooligan gangs, but hooligan groups, which maybe well be rivals in England, unite to form a big coalition to support the particular team.(William et al.1984). Debates in the European parliament and at national government level in many European community countries have highlighted a growing sense of frustration about our apparent inability to curb the anti-social behaviour of a minority of football supporters which constitutes the problem. But how did crowds conduct themselves in this period of expansion? The example cited is the 1923 cup final, when a crowd of about 20000 invaded the stadium and spilled on to the pitch. What is not so liable to be remembered is the fact that, after the match, fans in search of souvenirs invaded the royal box. In other words, some bad behaviours did take place at the matches that tend not to be recalled in the present day.

There has been no year in the history of English football where there was no violence and hooliganism. But there have been some instances like the inter-wars years, which certainly showed some light and signs of decline in the intensity was seen. The decline in violence had affected the crowd. More men, children, women went to matches. The increase in women participation was a major change. Many newspapers reported on good behaviour of the crowds after attending the cup matches and as years passed, the decline of the away set of fans also played a vital role. More police and security was seen inside and outside the stadium. Technology soon became the key component in order to prevent football hooliganism. Technology served as an easy measure for the police to stop violence. The essay therefore will give us a brief idea of the decline of hooliganism in football, keeping in mind these key evidences.