Hooling is an English word that in recent years has been incorporated into Spanish. A hooligan is a normally young individual who causes disturbances in the streets and who frequently carries out fights and acts of vandalism.
The term hooligan is commonly used in relation to football fans in Great Britain, who before, during and after some football matches have violent attitudes. However, do not think that the hooligan is exclusive to British football, since this type of behavior is common in Argentine, Spanish, Italian or Dutch football, among other nationalities.
Hooligans main traits
The hooligan does not act alone but is part of a collective, a group of followers organized as if they were a band. These groups have their own symbols, a normally extreme and radical ideology and support their team in a spirit contrary to Fair Play.
Normally the hooligans of a team tend to seek a fight with the hooligans of the rival team and for this reason it could be said that these bands act as if they were on a battlefield.
The consequences of hooliganism
These followers have starred in all kinds of violent incidents: fights, destruction of public furniture and there have even been cases of murders.
To combat this scourge, some clubs have banned these fans from entering the stadiums, as they have been declared persona non gratas.
To curb the rise of hooligans, the authorities of the different countries have adopted a series of measures: greater control at the entrance of the stadiums to detect extremist weapons or symbols, police devices in the vicinity of the stadiums to avoid confrontations and the installation surveillance cameras in stadiums to detect violent actions.
Soccer and violence
Although soccer is a noble sport, it is unfortunately associated with violent phenomena. There are several causes that can explain the soccer-violence binomial. On the one hand, some individuals with social problems need to form alliances with others to create their own identity and in this sense football has become an escape route for some minority sectors of society.
On the other hand, the heads of some football teams have sometimes favored this type of organization and have not adequately assessed the possible consequences.
Photos: iStock - Kontrec / Milorad Zaric
