Application of Football Fans Control Measures to Other Sports - Essay Example

An Assessment of the Application of Football Fans' Control Measures to Other Sports of the of Submitted Abstract Football fans have been known to involve themselves in violent behaviour during a game in a stadium. This is called football hooliganism (Braille, 2007:34). This includes destructive behaviours like fights and vandalism. Fights do occur between fans of opposing teams before or after a game. These fights could have been pre-meditated and carried out in a professional manner. Alternatively, they can be spontaneous occurrences that were not planned (Malinowski, 2006: 456). The latter is more common than the premeditated one. Football and violence are intertwined. They can be traced back as far as the middle ages (Peterson, 2005:78). This was in England. This led to the ban of football by King Edward the second. This was in 1314. During this time, football was a primitive and very violent game. It had no rules and brought rival villages together. The king believed that the violence in football could have detrimental effects. It could lead to social unrest and acts of treason. As a result of the violence that seems to perpetually follow the game of football, there have been introduction of control measures. This is to control the fans in a stadium and around the stadium during or before a game (Gerry, 2001:98). Many institutions have been formed to implement these measures. Rules have been introduced that fans have to observe, failure to which they are liable to prosecution (Wayne, 2008). Due to the relative success that has been attained so far through these measures, attempts have been made to introduce them into other games where violence is also occurring. Introduction On May of 1985, the football world suffered a tragedy in Brussels. Approximately forty fans were killed in Heysel stadium after violence broke out (Palin, 2009:34). This led to the adoption of a convention to prevent such an act from occurring again. This was called the European Convention. It was adopted the same year of 1985. It was set-up to look into violence and misdemeanour perpetrated by fans. This was in sports events with particular emphasis to the football sport (Johnstone, 2005: 12). It was signed by thirty four states. The convention provided a raft of changes to rules governing football especially when control of fans is concerned. It is still there today and continues to revise the rules to reflect the changing times and techniques of the game. But football is not the only game that has fans. Almost, if not all sports, have a dedicated base of fans. These fans are prone to engage in hooliganism just like their football compatriots (Irwin, 2004: 23). That is why there is also the need to control them too. These fans tend to go out of control and engage in destructive acts that, if left unchecked, may result to lose of life and property destruction. Basket ball is such one game that is marked with violence and hooliganism. It is important to note that fans are not controlled solely to avoid violence. They might be controlled to ensure that they have tickets and enters the field in an orderly manner. They might be controlled to ensure that they do not occupy spaces in the stadium that are not meant for them. This is like entering the pitch. There have been efforts to apply the rules that are used to control football fans to other spheres of sports. This paper will critically look at the need for such rules in other games other than foot ball. Objectives of the Study The broad objective of this paper is to assess the need for the control measures applied to football fans to be applied to other sports. But the paper is guided by specific objectives as outlined below: Why is it important to control fans in a game What are the causes of violent and unruly behaviour by fans during a game What are the results of unruly behaviour by fans What are some of the control measures applied to control fans in different games The most violent games and the most orderly Reasons supporting the application of football fans' control measures to other games. Reasons opposing the application of football fans' control measures to other sports. Reasons why it is Important to Control Fans in a Game Sports like football are accompanied by very strong emotions. The level of excitement peaks as the tournament continues (Gerry, 2001:90). The excitement might reach levels that are hard for the fan to control. They vent these emotions in destructive manners that are harmful to themselves and the others around them. It is important to control the fans to make sure that they do not vent off their excitement in a destructive manner. This is because if left unchecked, they may vent their anger, in case of a defeat, to the opposing fans. In case of an emergency, there is need for an orderly and calm evacuation of the fans from the stadium (Russell, 2002: 67). If the fans were not controlled during the evacuation, there might be stampedes that might lead to death or injury of people. The same might happen when the fans are getting inside the stadium. If they are not controlled, they might engage in a destructive stampede. Fans also need to be controlled to ensure that the organisers have collected the money for tickets from everyone. Lack of control may lead to some fans getting into the stadium without paying and this will be a loss to the organisers and the players (Braille, 2007: 64). That is why every fan has to pass through a gate where his ticket is inspected by an officer. If fans were not controlled, they may interrupt the progress of the game leading to total mayhem (Braille, 2007:23). There have reported cases of fans getting to the field and interrupting the game due to frustrations. The games are generally abandoned. Lack of fan control may also lead to lose of life and injury when rivals engage in fights (Linda, 2003: 35). When the fans collide with their rivals, they will tend to engage in violent fights that may result to death. Fans that are out of control pose a danger not only to themselves, but also to other people in the society (Peterson, 2005: 39). They may engage in vandalism whereby they destroy the property of other people in the society. There have been cases of rowdy fans pestering motorists, innocent ones at that, with stones leading to damage and loss of property (Malinowski, 2006: 13). As have been seen above, the illustrated cases of fan rowdy behaviour is not only found in football games. But it is found in majority of other games. Stampede can take place in a basket ball game as well as in a tennis tournament. As such, the rules of the football game applied to the fans can also be applied to these other games. There is need to apply those rules because these games are just like football. The importance of fans control is the same. But some of those rules applied in football are inapplicable to some other games (Johnstone, 2005:76). Some games like golf are for the so-called sophisticated people in the society. Some rules applied to football fans cannot be applied to them. This is simply because there is no need to control them. Or where that need to control them occurs, it is different from that of football. The control measures will tend to vary then. Causes of Unruly Behaviour by Fans during a Game Violence and unruly behaviour are the main reasons why it is important to control fans in a sport (Linda, 2003:78). Rules and control measures are generally geared towards taming of this behaviour. It is important if we could look at some of the causes of this behaviour in different sports. The major cause of unruly behaviour is the excitement that is associated with the game (Peterson, 2005:109). The excitement is caused by the pace of the game and the proximity of fans to one another. The proximity leads to a contagious effect whereby every body is infected by the excitement (Gerry, 2001:100). The excitement gets to heights such that it becomes impossible for the individual fan to control it. As a result, the crowd of fan acts as one and vents this excitement towards a common target. The target might be a fan of the rival team or fellow fans. Another cause of this behaviour is a perceived injustice that is meted out to a team (Irwin, 2004:45). The fans feel that they have been dealt a raw deal and feel the need to project the resultant frustration to a common target. They may fight the source of the frustration, for example a referee who has awarded an unfair score to a rival team. The fans may riot if they feel that the organisers of the game are not treating them fairly (Wayne, 2008: 69). This is what happens when fans are impatient to get into a stadium due to long queues and thus resort to jostling each other. They may also riot as a result of panic (Palin, 2009: 78). The panic may be real or just perceived. Just like excitement, panic also tends to be infectious. It will lead the fans to stampede as they try to access the limited exits to run away from the danger. The panic may have precipitated from alarm for fire or a bomb in the stadium. The cause of unruly behaviour in fans is the same between football and many games. It is thus important to apply the techniques used to control football fans in other games. This is because if the causes are the same, it is only logical to apply the same approaches. For example a stampede in a football stadium might be caused by slow screening of fans as they enter the stadium. The solution will either be to increase the number of entry points or to increase the number of officials screening the fans. These will be the same technique applied to avoid stampede in a rugby game. But the control measures are inapplicable or not needed in other games. This is because the cause of the unruly behaviour might be different from football in other games. Or the mode of response to the behaviour may vary. Consequences of Unruly Behaviour by Fans This behaviour might lead to some far reaching effects to the fans themselves and the rest of the people in the society (Malinowski, 2006: 9). At its worst, it may lead to death of the fans and other people around them. Many deaths in football history have been caused by stampede. Another consequence might be injury. The fans might engage in physical fights with their rivals. This may lead to injuries from both sides. A stampede may lead to injury as people get stepped on by others. The affected might be plagued by trauma for the rest of his life or for a long period (Johnstone, 2005: 67). This is especially so for survivors of stampedes. As a result, they need life long psychological counselling to deal with the problem. Property worth millions of dollars may also be destroyed (Gerry, 2001: 102). This is when the fans engage in vandalism. They might vandalise the facilities found in the stadium like lights and fences. They might pour to the streets and vandalise other peoples' property. They might also destroy the public and private property that lies in their path. The results of this are losses to the affected people. A lot of money is used to reconstruct and replace the vandalised property. The consequences of violent behaviour by fans are the same, regardless of whether the fan is for a football game or a tennis tournament. There is need therefore to deal with this problem in a uniform manner. Here, control measures for fans of football are needed to control other fans in other games. Some Control Measures Applied to Fans Some of the measures are the same in different games while others vary from one game to the other. This depends on the kind of the game and the kind of spectators that are expected to attend the game (Palin, 2009:78). One of the control measures is the erection of fences. This might be around the stadium or around the pitch (Irwin, 2004:78). When erected around the stadium, the fence is meant to keep away the rest of the public that is not meant to watch the game. It helps when the fans have to pay for tickets since it is very easy to control the entrance and exit points. But this has its disadvantages. In case of any perception of danger by the fans, there are many casualties as they try to evacuate the stadium. This is because the space is enclosed with few exit points. This is cause for more panic by the fans. The erection of perimeter fences is mainly done in football stadiums. But it can also be applied in other sports like rugby, tennis and basketball. However, it is not needed in other sports where there is no need to enclose the field. These sports are like marathons and car races (Braille, 2007:89). These sports need an open and expanse field and so fans can not be controlled by means of perimeter fences. Another form of fence is the one erected within the stadium itself, but around the pitch. This one is meant to keep away the fans from the field. The fans are controlled such that they only remain in the viewing stands. This is again very common in football fields. The problem is that these fences have been accused of obstructing the fans from viewing the game (Palin, 2009:32). In fact, the European Council once directed that these fences be eliminated. This is because they were seen to cause more violent behaviour from the fans as they became frustrated. This kind of control can be used in other games where it is important to keep the fans away from the field for safety measures. For example, bull fighting or car races. But it is inapplicable to other sports like golf or table tennis. Fans in football can also be controlled by the presence of police officers in the field and around the field. This deters any person with intent of making trouble from engaging in troublesome activities. This is applicable to other sports other than football where trouble from the fans is likely to occur. Another form of control is separating fans of rival teams from each other (Malinowski, 2006:45). This can be achieved by setting out different entry points and seats for the two teams' fans. This prevents them from coming into contact with each other and causing trouble. This can be applied in sports other than football that have two sets of opposing fans. This is like rugby and basketball. But it is inapplicable, and not needed, in sports that do not have two distinct set of teams. These are sports like horse racing and marathon. Fans are not divided into two distinct and opposing sides. This form of control has been accused of confusing fans in a football game that do not support either of the team but still want to view the game. Fans in football cam also are controlled by the use of screening devices as they enter the field (Peterson, 2005: 67). These are metal detectors that ensure that fans do not enter the field with harmful weapons like guns and knives. This screening can be applied to other sports where the fans are entering into an enclosed stadium, like wrestling. But it is not needed in sports that are not enclosed. For example, it cannot be used to control fans that are lined along a racing track for outdoor car races. The above are just some of the control measures used to control football fans and how they apply to other sports. But the list does not contain all the measures. There are many more that are not covered in this paper. Conclusion Some games are violent than others. The most violent one is football. Others are rugby, basketball, hockey, and skiing. Others are more peaceful. These are like golf, chess and marathon. Different measures have been introduced to control fans in football. These measures have had a measure of success, little criticism not withstanding. These measures have been taken up by other sports and applied to them. Some of the measures are applicable in other sports since they have the same circumstances like football. But they are inapplicable in other sports since they are totally different from soccer. Bibliography List Braille, R. 2007. Fan etiquette. 1st Edition. London. Newton Books. Gerry, G. 2001. Supporters of a generation. Massachusetts. Prentice Hall. Irwin, S. 2004. My team, my life: control of emotions in a game. California. Irwin and Russell. Johnstone, R. 2005. Contagious behaviour among football fans. Texas. McGraw Hill Publishers. Linda, S. 2003. Control measures for football fans. Dallas. Mitchell and Facoult. Malinowski, U. 2006. Football hooliganism. New York. Willy and Company Book Distributors. Palin, S. 2009. Fan violence: causes, effects and control measures. Nebraska. Fatoll Publishers. Peterson, D. 2005. History of football. Houston. Arrow Books. Russell, F. 2002. This game football. Illinois. Macko House. Wayne, R. 2008. Fans' violence in America. Chicago. McKenzie. Read More