Fanatic Violence at Football Matches

Violence seems to be encouraged in Italy at times because the 'ultras' are as much a part of the clubs upper management as they are the clubs supporters. Stadiums are vastly outdated and would not come close to meeting all of or even any of the recommendations handed down by the Taylor Report.

As a result, Italian ultras are often occupy entire sections of stadiums and are even in charge of the security in such sections. This is how they end up with incidents like the one where a moped was smuggled into the stadium and dropped onto spectators in the lower level.

The problem is more prevelant in Turkey and Italy because there is a lack of government involvement and the level of corruption has reached the upper levels of management in the clubs and Serie A itself. Ultras have influence over managerial decisions, transfers, and even the appointment of club presidents. Until this is solved by Italy and Turkey themselves or Euro, violence will continue to occur and such countries will not receive the full benefits of hosting lucrative Cup competitions or even the multi-billion dollar television contracts that the EPL, La Liga, and Budesliga enjoy.

The violence in Germany is similar to the violence in America at sporting events where it is usually attributed to drunken fans getting into fights, much like at a Cubs v Sox game in the summer. Germany is actually very similar to the United States in terms of their overall passion and attendance at a variety of sporting events. I think when NFL Europe was still around most teams were actually in Germany. Also, the Budesliga is the second highest attended league in the world, only trailing the NFL in average attendance at games.

Very interesting topic and I'm glad so many people have taken the time to give their opinions on it.