Reuben Babalola

FAN VIOLENCE IN INTERNATIONAL SOCCER There are things humans are especially passionate about, and history has shown that there is a thin line between passion and violence when it comes to sporting events. Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world, and this means there are a lot of passionate football fans out there, and with passion comes a great deal of seriousness which sometimes translates violence. It is not uncommon to see or hear cases of fan violence before, during, and after soccer matches. Why is that? Some may ask, well the answer is not far fetched. Soccer fans tend to be extremely attached to the sport for a range of different reasons and these can cause an uproar within the fans, which subsequently results in fan violence. In this article, we will discuss the causes of fan violence and how they affect the fans and the game as a whole. Causes of fan violence Listed below, are the most common causes of fan violence with regards to soccer: ● On-pitch violence and arguments: Sometimes, fan violence can occur as a result of a quarrel between players on the pitch, coaches, and other staff that are on the pitch. When some fans witness a tackle or quarrel between players, they tend to also take it upon themselves to revolt against a decision of the quarrel in question, and this can cause violence. ● Dissatisfaction with Referee decisions: Some fans might have reservations with regards to decisions or calls made by the referees, and this can also result in fan violence. Penalty calls, red cards, questionable goal calls or cancellations also tend to result in fan violence. The passion shown by fans often make them erratic when a decision they are not comfortable with is made by the referee. The referee reserves the right to make any decision on the pitch, but some fans do not care about that, and they result in violence. Fan violence should be frowned upon, as it sometimes results in injuries and in rare cases, death. Soccer is a game that supports unity and fair play, and it should be kept that way.