England has the biggest following of supporters in the world, whether it be the national side who regularly take 100,000 fans to major tournaments or club sides in European competition. England also have a fierce reputation for violence with an unprecedented number of incidents spanning three decades.



During the 1970's and 1980's football hooliganism in England was rife with incidents kicking off up and down the country every weekend. When the hooligans went abroad they left a trail of destruction in there wake.

Russia has a fearsome reputation for football violence. The main hooligan firms belong to Cska Moscow, Sparktak Moscow and Zenit St Petersburg. For many years the Russian military ruled football stadiums and was widely regarded as worse than hooligans for the vicious beatings they handed out to control crowds.

As a result many firms felt the best way for them to have a tear up was away from the stadiums and now more so than anywhere else, pre arranged fights take place in fields, car parks anywhere away from prying eyes of the authorities. One of the oldest firms in Russia is Spartaks Gladiators who were formed in 1996. There main rivals are CSKA Moscow who are called Gallant Steeds. The rivalry between these two firms is such that it spills over into ice hockey and various other sports between the two sides. The most famous between the Gladiators and Gallant Steed happened at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon at a busy inter-section. The battle of 1905 street saw 200 CSKA up against 200 Spartak as people went about there everyday business. CSKA were victorious that day and even the leader of Sparktaks firm agreed saying they weren't mentally prepared for the battle.



The most active firm outside Moscow is Zenit St Peteresburg. They come from the second biggest city in Russia. There firm is called musichall which back in 2004 was created by bringing together all the top fighters from Zenits different firms. The aim was to create an elite crew which could knock Moscows firms off top spot.

In Russia the majority of firms have signed up to a code of honour called fair play. The time and location for the fight is pre arranged, no weapons are used and the numbers taking part in each side are agreed in advance. The Russian hooligans say the fair play agreement shows respect for each other, your opponent, the enemy. These firms treat hooliganism like a sport with rules to be obeyed.

In 2005 firms from Zenit and Spartak met in a St Petersburg car park. There was over 200 on each side and because it was filmed, has become one of the most famous hooligan battles to date. There will be plenty of videos of pre arranged fights on this site so check the links to the right hand side.

Russia today suffers from inequality on a massive scale, even despite the vast reserves of natural resources the country has. The difference between the have's and have not's makes Russia an extremely unfair society. But the great irony is , it's the hooligans who have created a level playing field. They want a fair fight, it's the firms that are showing respect for each other.

Football violence exploded in Poland in the 1990's. The collapse of communism brought a failing economy and rising unemployment which made young men angry as they became disillusioned with life. This situation created an increase in the size of hooligan firms. Young men were looking to release there anger.

Poland to this day still has many problems with hooligans. The Polish government and F.A. have looked to England for the way they dealt with football hooliganism in the 1980's. One of the largest and most ruthless firms is Wisla Krakow's, Wisla Sharks. They have a reputation for using weapons such as knives and bats. In 1998 a knife was thrown by a Wisla fan from the stands during a Uefa cup match between Wisla and Parma. The knife hit Italian international Dino Baggio who required 5 stitches to a head wound.

Krakow is home to two football teams that are seperated by a small park and lie just 500 metres away from each other. The derby match between Wisla Krakow and there less successful neighbours Cracovia is the longest running in Poland, over 100 years old. Cracovia's firm is called Anty Wisla, such is there hatred of there local rivals. While most hooligans in Poland are against the use of weapons, Krakow is called the City of knives as the two local firms will stop at nothing to fight for the respect of there teams.

At the 100th anniversary of the derby between Wisla Krakow and Cracovia, the Wisla Sharks lined up hundreds of Cracovia scarfs that they had stolen off them during battles through the season and set fire to them inside the ground. There aim was to anger the Cracovia fans and let them know how many times they had been ambushed throughout the season.


In Warsaw however there is different vibe to hooliganism. There is a no weapons pact. Firms from this part of Poland have signed up to the fair fight agreement and take part in pre arragned fights in the forest. The numbers each firm will bring is arranged in advance and fighting takes place away from the public eye.

Italian ultras are world famous for there passionate visual and vocal displays that they put on at football matches. The ultras organise choreography's involving banners, flares, smoke effects and fireworks to create electric atmospheres that are the envy of Europe.

But for all the good they do in creating these atmospheres there is a darker under belly to what ultras stand for. Ultra in Italian means beyond limit, they have a strong, deep and insane passion for there clubs. They are prepared to fight for the respect of there clubs colours and weapons including knives are commonly used.

In more recent years there has been a number of serious injuries and deaths as a result of football violence. The highest profile case being the death of a policeman at a game between Catania and Palermo. Police officer Filippo Raciti was struck in the face with a small explosive after trying to break up the fighting outside the stadium. The game itself was suspended after an hour due to crowd trouble. The police fired tear gas into the stands and the players were unable to continue. The violence broke out because Palermo fans were stopped from entering the ground until the second half. As a result the Italian football association called a halt to all matches while they undertook a review of the situation. Now football matches are played with tighter security measures in place. Although this hasn't eradicated the problem.

Holland is one of the most tolerant and liberal countries in the world but has some of the most violent football hooligans. It all started back in the 1970's where one of the earliest confrontations happened when Spurs met Feyenoord in the UEFA Cup.


Ever since then firms were formed and they became more organised and violent. The biggest four hooligan firms in Holland belong to Feyenoord from Rotterdam, Ajax from Amsterdam, FC Den Haag and FC Utrecht. The rivalry between these firms is instense, with the biggest hooligan elelments belonging to Ajax and Feyenoord who have the largest folllowing. Ajax's F-Side and Feyenoord, who come from the second largest city in Holland, have been at the forefront of hooligan violence and have been at war for years.
Ajax Hooligans and Feyenoord Hooligans

In 1989 a match between Ajax and Feyenoord made world news after two homemade bombs exploded injuring nineteen, nine of them seriously. Ajax's stadium was turned into a war zone and it was a miracle nobody was killed. The growing reputation of dutch hooligans went global and the authorities started to look at measures that could be introduced to contain them. All seater stadiums and CCTV was introduced but this didn't change anything, the violence just went from the stadium into the streets.

In 1997 the top boy from Ajax was murdered when the F-Side clashed with hooligans from Feyenoord. They were not even playing each other on the day of the fight. They met on the side of the motorway just outside Amsterdam. Both firms were tooled up with stanley knives, baseball bats, hammers, bicycle chains and truncheons. Police seized an arsenal of weapons including molotov cocktails and electric stun guns. The F-Sides top boy was battered to death. The government conceded that hooliganism was out of control and called in the army to police football matches and help control the situation.
FC Den Haag Hooligans

FC Den Haag's hooligans are called North Side, which comes from the end of the ground that they congregate in. Den Haag is an old fashioned football club. They have been dubed the Millwall of Holland and there main rivals are Ajax. There hatred dates back to the late 1980's where Den Haag through bombs and flares into the Ajax end. The game was stopped after 45 minutes as police fought running battles with fans in all four sides of the ground. It kicked off big time and footage show numerous motionless bodies being carted out of the stands.

The hatred took a new twist in 2005 when Den Haag Hooligans set fire to Ajax's supporters club in the middle of the night. A year later 70 of Ajax's firm attacked Den Haag's clubhouse, stabbed two of there firm as well as burning down there clubhouse they tried to set 2 of Den Haag's firm on fire. This led the police to block the motorways between Den Haag and Amsterdam, the government declared a state of emergency.
FC Urecht Hooligans

FC Urechts firm is Bunnikzijde, again after the side of the ground they are situated. There younger firms members have been brought into the hooligan world in Holland at a time when weapons are used in every single fight. They don't know any different but because of the security at matches today they are forced into pre arranged battles away from the stadiums. The viciousness of these battles has left the media repeatedly stating that more football related deaths are envitable in Holland. Despite the governements attempt to stamp out football violence it doesn't seem to be going away.

Turkey is home to some of the world's most fanatical supporters. There culture is so strongly based on honour that people are prepared to kill to defend it. 80% of the Turkish population are below the poverty line and as with many other countries in the same situation, Turkey is a hotbed for football violence.


Fenerbahce and Galatasaray , who are both from Istanbul, are the two biggest clubs in Turkey. The Bosphorus Straits separates the two with Galatasaray on the European side and Fenerbahce on the Asian side of the city. Fenerbahce's firm are called KFI - Kill For You, who have a violent passion for there side and won't stop at anything to defend it. Galatasaray's firm are known as UltrAslan and they have members from all over the world. The UltrAslan brand has become so successful they have sold more tops than the club have sold team shirts. It was the hooligans who gave the brand to the club when they were 150 million pounds in debt, which stopped them from going out of business.



Galatasaray were involved in a violent clash back in 2000 when two Leeds United fans were tragically stabbed to death. The Turks claimed that drunken Leeds fans were being rowdy and pulled moonies on passers by, something which is a serious offence to Turkish customs. Leeds fans were attacked with iron bars, hatchets and knives. The two Leeds supporters were innocent parties caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In the UK there was a huge anti Turkey campaign and the media called for Galatasaray to be banned from european football. Those calls were ignored and Galatasaray went on to win the UEFA cup beating Arsenal in the final. There was more riots after the match had finished and four fans were stabbed as the hatred between English and Turkish fans became even stronger.

The Balkan section of this site will look into the hooligan elements of Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece. These countries are rife with extreme violence that is not usually associated with western hooligans.


In December 2007 a plain clothed Serbian police officer from the elite Gendarmerie Unit - Nebojsa Trajkovic (42) (pictured above) - was identified in the stands by hooligans from Red Star Belgrade’s notorious “Delije” (heroes) firm who attacked him with broken chairs and attempted to set him on fire with flares. The entire incident was broadcast live on TV. The terrified and badly injured policeman was forced to fire warning shots into the air to save himself from the mob.



Eventually colleagues managed to get to him and save his life. The fighting continued both inside and outside the stadium. Several hooligans have been arrested and charged so far. They face charges ranging from public violence to attempted murder.

Officer Trajkovic suffered 1st and 2nd degree burns (non scarring) to his face and body, as well as lacerations, bruising and mental trauma. He is expected to make a full recovery.

Football hooliganism is a massive problem in Serbia, where an under-funded and partially reformed police force are up against hordes of unemployed and angry young men - the lost, disinherited “war generation” that is bearing the brunt of Serbia’s economic and social hardships.