Review of Literature
Soccer fan Hooliganism in England
Soccer fans all over the world sit and watch in anxiousness on the days where any English teams play. The current stereotype of England fans being rowdy and starting fights amongst the fans all but ring true throughout the soccer world, so much that “The association between England football fans and collective violence, or ‘hooliganism’, is strikingly pervasive—so much so that ‘hooliganism’ itself has been referred to as the ‘English disease’ (Frosdick & Marsh, 2005; p. 3)” (Stott, et. al). With the origination of soccer being in England, the people have a more deeply rooted emotional connection to the game. In a study done, “…found that the presence of risk matches (emotionally charged matches, e.g. between historical rivals) had a systematic effect on hooliganism (Braun and Vliegenthart, 2008: 811).”
Soccer fan Hooliganism in United States
As soccer’s popularity begins to grow rapidly in the United States, the concern of ‘soccer hooligans’ becomes a topic of discussion. America’s many sports fandoms have their own sections of hardcore, devoted fans, so it is only natural for soccer to follow a similar path. However, “America created a new identity which prided itself on being explicitly different from that anywhere in aristocratic Europe” (1990: 234). America’s soccer culture vastly differs from that of England and other major soccer countries. The majority of the population still views soccer as “a pastime associated with ‘immigrants’ and ‘outsiders’ (Foer 2005Foer, F. 2005. How Football Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization, New York: Arrow Books.; Lanfranchi and Taylor 2001Lanfranchi, P. and Taylor, M.2001. Moving with the Ball: The Migration of Professional Footballers, New York: Berg.). With this mental image in the minds of millions of Americans, the amount of passion that soccer needs to be able to incite hooliganism will never come to fruition. Soccer will not be truly considered an ‘American sport’ for many years to come.
Soccer fans all over the world sit and watch in anxiousness on the days where any English teams play. The current stereotype of England fans being rowdy and starting fights amongst the fans all but ring true throughout the soccer world, so much that “The association between England football fans and collective violence, or ‘hooliganism’, is strikingly pervasive—so much so that ‘hooliganism’ itself has been referred to as the ‘English disease’ (Frosdick & Marsh, 2005; p. 3)” (Stott, et. al). With the origination of soccer being in England, the people have a more deeply rooted emotional connection to the game. In a study done, “…found that the presence of risk matches (emotionally charged matches, e.g. between historical rivals) had a systematic effect on hooliganism (Braun and Vliegenthart, 2008: 811).”
Soccer fan Hooliganism in United States
As soccer’s popularity begins to grow rapidly in the United States, the concern of ‘soccer hooligans’ becomes a topic of discussion. America’s many sports fandoms have their own sections of hardcore, devoted fans, so it is only natural for soccer to follow a similar path. However, “America created a new identity which prided itself on being explicitly different from that anywhere in aristocratic Europe” (1990: 234). America’s soccer culture vastly differs from that of England and other major soccer countries. The majority of the population still views soccer as “a pastime associated with ‘immigrants’ and ‘outsiders’ (Foer 2005Foer, F. 2005. How Football Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization, New York: Arrow Books.; Lanfranchi and Taylor 2001Lanfranchi, P. and Taylor, M.2001. Moving with the Ball: The Migration of Professional Footballers, New York: Berg.). With this mental image in the minds of millions of Americans, the amount of passion that soccer needs to be able to incite hooliganism will never come to fruition. Soccer will not be truly considered an ‘American sport’ for many years to come.