Although the exact definition of hooligans is rather open-ended, it can be characterised as violence toward opposing fans, players, and referee's or destruction of objects inside or around the stadium.

Although the exact definition of hooligans is rather open-ended, it can be characterised as violence toward opposing fans, players, and referee’s or destruction of objects inside or around the stadium. Violent incidents that occur following a game that fans perpetrate is also often considered acts of hooliganism (Soccer-website). The problem of football hooliganism has its roots deep in social development and is associated with aggression and maturation rituals. Furthermore, the media has negatively impacted the problem by publicising, and exaggerating hooligan activities. What we know today as hooliganism began in Britain in the late nineteen-sixties. Riots, field invasions, beatings, and deaths were characterised by the media as “football hooligans,” and thus came era of violence to football.

Although sporadic violence in football occurred from 1900 to 1960, it was attributed to nothing more than overzealous or drunk fans. In the 1964 soccer season, fan began to take on a rather peculiar pastime called “taking ends,” where fans on one side of the stadium would rush the opposing fans’ side and try to take control of their section. These acts of violence, team identification, and ritual aggression developed in a few short years into the social epidemic of soccer hooligans. (Soccer-website)

So what has caused these soccer fans to become hooligans? This question has been the cause of major debate in the sociological community. There have been many different opinions to the cause hooliganism, however many of the theories are somewhat compatible with each. One proposed cause is retaliation against the professionalisation of soccer. During the 1950’s and 1960’s soccer developed from a sport that was played by local soccer clubs, to a spectator sport where fans watched professional athletes. It is thought that this change in the sport may have alienated many fans making them feel excluded from their favourite sport and pass time (Taylor). Sociologist Ian Taylor states that feelings of alienation may cause hooliganism, which is a symbolic attempt to regain control of game from wealthy upper class that now control the sport (Taylor).

This is a preview of the whole essay

Hooligans attempts to regain some sense of inclusion in the sport by instead of being players, they support their team by cheering and in general show support. The charters of “supportership” seem to present however; hooligans fail to abide by social behaviour that is acceptable in the stadium situation (Clarke). In general hooligans are attempting to identify with their team like other fans, however their show of support does not fall within acceptable social realms. And sometimes they are involved in competition of their own in the stands. “While the points are being won or lost on the field, territory is won or lost in the terraces (stands). The “ends” away record (how good it is at taking territory where the home supporters usually stand) is as important, if not more, than their team’s away record. Similarly the chants, slogans and songs demonstrate support for the team and involve an effort to intervene in the game itself, by lifting and encouraging their team, and putting off the opposition…The violence between the sets of fans is part of this participation in the game – part of the extension of the game on the field to include the terraces too.” (Clarke). John Clarke a Sociologist at the University of Birmingham feels that hooliganism is also an attempt by youths to resolve conflicts in their lives. These acts of hooliganism are an attempt to retaliate against being in a lower social position. The hooligans are trying to rebel against their subordinate positions against adults, and most often rebelling against their subordinate positions in the working class (Clark).

In the 1960’s the British newspapers and television highly sensationalised the phenomenon of football hooligans. The media constructed hooliganism as mindless “thuggery,” chaotic, and riotous. Accounts of hooliganism we depicted by journalists as animalism, less than human, drunken brawling, and vicious (Cohen). Public debate about hooliganism was based almost solely on media over-dramatised accounts. The huge rise in public concern to a minor deviance created a hooliganism scare. Stadium owners struggled to install safety measures in stadiums like cages or segregation of opposing fans, but these safety measures often enraged the hooligans even more, creating even more of a problem (Cohen). This was not the only problem that media involvement had created in hooliganism. The highly publicised accounts of hooliganism had created a new forum where hooligans compete. Hooligans that supported different teams would compete for headlines in newspapers, one hooligan chant was “We are the famous hooligans, read all about us!” (Cohen).

The media is definitely not completely to blame here. There are definitely other social factors that are at work in hooliganism. However they do play a role in the problem. Stanley Cohen, a sociologist that has studied the media impact on soccer hooliganism, made this statement about media involvement: “I do think that there is a major problem about the way the press has selected, presented and defined football hooliganism over the years… I don’t think that the problem of hooliganism would all go away if only the press would keep it’s collective mouth shut or look the other way. I do however believe that the phenomenon know, as “football hooliganism” is not the simple “Savages Animals! story that has substantially been presented by the press” (Cohen)

Now that some of the causes of hooliganism have been explained and media’s role has been uncovered lets take a look at a soccer theoretical match. First we will start out describing the scenario on game day. A rather large crowd has gathered and the soccer grounds are nearly full. The crowd consists manly of home team supporters, however the crowd still has a considerable percentage of visiting team supporters. Both sections of supporter partake in the drinking of alcohol, cheering, and giving overall support to their team. It is at this point in the game, if not earlier that symbolic language and gestures are developed to both cheers on their team, while insulting and degrading the opposing team. Also, there is competition between fans on the same side to be the biggest supporter of their team. Each side engages in ritual aggression, except instead of using violence at this point, they use aggressive words, and gestures. As the game progresses the intensity and animosity of the crowd intensifies as they continue to identify with their team. Today the tension is especially high because there exists a rivalry between the two teams, similar to the rivalry between the Milwall and Norwich football teams. The game continues to be aggressive with slogans, chants and symbolic gestures. Consider in the final five minutes of the game with the score tied, a referee makes a bad call, which immediately brings the crowd to its feet. Minutes later a second bad call is made, and some already standing fans make a rush at the field, assaulting players and referee’s. The opposing fans feeling support for their team as begin to rush not only to protect their team, but also to symbolically prove man hood. The press that was present at the event over dramatises what happen, and the incident begins to raise concern in the community. Fearing more bad publicity and violence, the stadium owners install safety measures to prevent riots, such as fences, cages, and segregation of opposing fans. The Fan now feel boxed in, in the stands. The next time the game becomes tumultuous fans has now where to go. They break down barricades and try to attack opposing players, or flee. This incident is even more violent than the last and causes further exploitation from the media. The only difference now is that hooligans are stereotyped and have something to prove next time there is a squabble.

This theoretical situation shows some aspects of how ritual aggression and media embellishment have created a problem. Although the background circumstance of all hooligan acts is different, the majority of the cases do show some commonality, which has allowed sociologists to develop theories to explain the behaviour of hooligans.

First hooliganism is an attempt to construct an identity by retaliating against suppressers, and by succeeding in being a “fan,” when they cannot succeed in being most other things in life. Secondly hooliganism is simply a way that modern man acts out ritual aggression similar to war in the past. Also, hooliganism provides a way for juveniles to prove their maturation. Thirdly hooliganism was only a slight problem in juvenile deviance until that media sensationalised the sport, which in term popularised hooliganism.

Reference:

Clark, John. Football and working class fans: Tradition and change. London: Inter-Action, 1978

Cohen, Stanley. Folk Devils and Moral Panics. London: Paladin, 1971

Dal Lago, Alessandro. Italian football fans: Culture and Organisation. London: Routledge, 1994

Marsh, Peter. Rules in the organization of action: Empirical studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983

"Soccer Violence in Europe." Social Issue Research Center. <http://www.sirc.org/publik/fvcross.html>Online. 5 may 2002

Taylor, Ian. " Class, violence and sport: The case of soccer hooliganism in Britain." Sport, Culture and the State. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1982

HOLT R. 1989.Sport and the British. Oxford: Oxford University Press

KERR H. 1994.Understanding Soccer Hooliganism. Buckingam: Open University Press

TAYLOR R. 1992.Football and its Fans. Leicester: Leicester Universty Press

Resources from Internet

noviolence.com/archives

dailynews.yahoo.com-22.06.2000

bbc.com- Hooliganism made in England but big abroad-26.02.1998

titonet.com/hooligans

thesportjournal.com- A developmental view of soccer hooliganism by A.J Harley

intorminc.co.uk- Hooliganism-a political football

eserver.org- Playing for England by Paul Smith