Euro 16 - they should ban the countries involved in fighting

[Sherlocked1606]

Having watched the news the past few nights it's seems clear some fans have just gone to France to cause trouble.

Yes the English fans were attacked/provocted today however they were very much the instigators yesterday.

Surely Russian, France and England football teams should be disqualified from the tournament. Same goes for any other teams who's fans cause trouble.

At least 1 England fan is seriously injured potential life threatening. I've seen footage of Russian fans stamping on English fans, throwing chairs. Water cannons, tear gas. Enough is enough, it's only football.

[Alconleigh]

It's like being in the 80s and early 90s again. And yes, it does tar all football supporters with the same brush. And that has horrible consequences.

This behaviour, and the consequent view that therefore all football supporters are scum, is part of what led to the Hillsborough cover up being believed....because it's football....they're animals, right? And the fact that the barriers were there, to be crushed against, was down to pitch invasions etc.

It's utterly toxic. And it needs to be eliminated. And if that means banning England from tournaments, crack on.

[Lweji]

I don't think the national teams should be banned due to "supporters", speaking as a supporter of a country who's caused more bad behaviour on the pitch than their supporters.
Hooligans are not that dissimilar to terrorists. They are mostly intent on causing trouble and who knows who is actually stirring problems (it could be infiltrated "fans").
However, there is a case for banning spectators from matches and from travelling. As well as additional security measures, including regarding the sale of alcohol and banning travel or resuming full border controls. I'm not sure the French were quite prepared for the possibility of violence among fan groups and more due to terrorism.

[SteamTrainsRealAleandOpenFires]

I'm thinking harshly punish the team then the FA or other football associations will do something about the fans

Yep that should happen. Also the team/country should pay a min of 5x the wages of the cops involved as a fine. Plus barred from playing in any european footie match, for about 10 years.

Perhaps the police should do what happened in the 1980s 1990s used dyed water in the water cannons anyone caught with dye is arrested and deported. It would mean that potentially innocent people are arrested but it would show a firm line

Not much fun if the innocent party is well away from the match area!.

Mrs TP...of course Canada's hockey matches are always peaceful aren't they?.

[Lweji]

It's actually like calling all Canada AMERICA
Except that Canada IS America. Just not United States of it.

[hollyisalovelyname]

Superram it is worrying that genuine fans, like your dad will get caught up
In the awful rioting. How do French police know whether you are a rioter or an innocent fan who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time?

[Lweji]

This is what the UK (and everyone gets tarred with the same brush)
Speaking as a non-UK national and not even RoI, no they don't. Groups with England shirts cause all the worries.

[lisaneedsarest]

My dp is out in Marseille (to watch the football not fight), he said On Friday fans were rowdy and a load of the had congregated in an English pub and were singing and chanting but not fighting, he was in a restaurant opposite eating. French police tear gassed the fans before any violence, just to disperse the crowds that they believed would become violent. It was then that the violenced started. He also said it was about 70 odd fans.
There are thousands of English Fans out there and a very, very small percentage of them have been badly behaved or violent, most people in Marseille would only have known about the violence from reading it in the paper!

I called so last night worried when I read about the violence after the match, he was sitting in the other side of the ground, left straightaway and wasn't aware of any trouble at all, again probably the same as the majority of England fans.

I can't see that banning a whole country for the actions of a small percentage of people is fair.

[Zampa]

There's no doubt been a minority of English fans behaving badly. But let's see how you feel when 200 Russian casuals charge at you and your family with knives out and the police are not only not helping you but they're hitting you with batons and chucking around tear gas.

The French police are antagonising the situation (as they did in 1998) and poor risk strategies are causing dangerous situations in the stadia.

Taking collective action against teams/countries is as bad as Trump wanting to ban Muslins from entering the US.

[Zampa]

Muslims obviously. I don't think Trump has anything against muslins.

[Lweji]

You never know, Zampa.
They could be next.

[NaughtToThreeSadOnions]

lweli that's exactly what I mean, same land mass not same country

[Iliveinalighthousewiththeghost]

I can get where you're coming from, but. Why should the teams and well behaved fans be penalised for the atrocious actions of others. I agree with others ban the individuals.

[lovelyupnorth]

Let's just ban football and stick to civilised sports like rugby.

[Lweji]

Maybe we could put the hooligans in cages and let them fight each other to their content.

[fassone]

Don't worry about it. If there's a Brexit they'll be fingerprinted, scanned and hosed down in orange jumpsuits before being allowed into the Euros.

It's not a UK thing. It's an Engerland thing. These clowns aren't fans anyway.

[AnchorDownDeepBreath]

Back in 2000, UEFA warned the FA that England would be kicked out if fans couldn't behave in Brussels. We were knocked out anyway.

The problem with this is that there are a lot of people enjoying the football calmly and you'd punish them for some thugs that most probably travelled to the tournament planning to get drunk and cause trouble. The French police are dealing with this their way but it's not overly effective. Russia are ready with stun grenades and heavy duty crowd control - they will rule the tournament there with an iron fist if their suggestions here are anything to go by!

The FA is undoubtedly going to be hit with lots of fines and we might end up with a few games that we can't have a crowd for if this carries on but really we need some punishments that punish the offenders rather than fans as a whole, because 90% of the general fans haven't done anything wrong.

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

I've watched some horrifying scenes over the past couple of days with violence from both Russian 'fans' and England 'fans'.
I don't think the French police tactics of tear gas first are very effective at all and I think they make it worse. It tends to enrage people rather than calm things down. It's clear though that some of those causing trouble, set out with the intent to cause trouble.

[Chippednailvarnishing]

I'd like to see a 48 hour complete ban on the selling of alcohol within a 15 mile radius of a city hosting a match.
I'm certain it would at least reduce the level of aggression.

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Whilst I think that would help Chipped, I wonder if cities would then refuse to host matches because they would lose a lot of revenue coming into the local economy.

[AnchorDownDeepBreath]

There's a ban on alcohol around the England Wales game isn't there?

I wonder if it'll make a difference.

[WreckingBallsInsideMyHead]

Travel bans and fines for anyone causing trouble, prison if bans are broken

It's only England, all the other home nations are peacefully enjoying themselves. But it's not the majority of English fans, who also want to have a good time watching sport. I don't think French police tactics have been helpful, rather quite antagonistic and threatening to peaceful fans.

[Chippednailvarnishing]

Ohyou I'm guessing that anyone particularly business savvy would just raise their other prices or impose higher tourist taxes!

[MrsJayy]

I do think penalising the teams would work too the fans behaviour is a disgrace and they should not be allowed to any matches again i have seen people jump on the russians by passing what the English trying to deflect this behaviour but they are all as bad as each other.

[Zampa]

Wrecking It really isn't just England fans involved. Northern Irish fans were caught up in trouble last night too.

And outside of the home nations, fans from France, Russia and Poland have all been reported as causing issues.

Hooligans don't have a geographical bias.

[LittleLionMansMummy]

They're not football fans. They're criminals who happen to be wearing a national team shirt.

But I'm afraid I do have to question the French police tactics and ask why these kinds of scenes were not witnessed in South Africa and other recent football tournaments. It seems their 'preventative' dispersal tactics are particularly inflammatory. I'm sure the heightened security is not helping to relieve tensions either and their overreaction is possibly due to the terrorist threat too though.

As for nationalism, thugs and racists etc I find it remarkable that UK police are able to facilitate peaceful protests between EDL and opposing groups without using tear gas and water cannons, yet the French seem incapable of containing a football tournament. These scenes pre- date the current terrorist threat and have seemed the hallmark of tournaments held in France. It's not just the English 'fans' after all but other countries who are now involved in the violence. I don't believe this is coincidence or purely down to the criminality/ drunkenness of a minority. My sister and her dh have been first hand witnesses to French policing tactics.

And I say all of this as a strong supporter of UK policing and someone who loves France and the French people.