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Hooliganism is unruly and destructive behaviour, usually by gangs of young people. The origin of the name is uncertain, but it is known that it appeared in a 1898 London police report. One theory has the name coming from an Irish hoodlum from London named Patrick Hooligan; another has it coming from a street gang in Islington named "Hooley", a third lists "Hooley" as an Irish word which means a wild, spirited party.
It is now frequently linked in the public mind with the game and support of football (soccer) clubs. The term has however been widely used since (at least) the 1990s to describe various street gangs of youths behaving indecently. Hooligans have also attached themselves to other sports, such as rugby and even of recent times cricket.
Violence in sports is probably as old as civilization. In the 6th century, rivalry between supporters of the Blue and Green chariot-racing teams in Constantinople, led to 30,000 deaths in the week of the Nika riots in 532.
The game of football (soccer in the United States) has long been associated with violence since its beginnings in 13th century England. Medieval football matches involved hundreds of players, and were essentially pitched battles between the young men of rival villages. Only two periods in British history have been relatively free of football-related violence: the inter-war years and the decade following the Second World War.
The behaviour now known as 'football hooliganism' originated in England in the early 1950s.
In other European countries, similar patterns of behaviour emerged about 10 years later, in the early 1970s. Italian fans created a particularly fanatical brand of football support known as Ultra. Ultras are now a major force in the Italian game and are prevalent in a few European countries.
Active Hooligan Groups
England/Wales Liverpool and Everton reportedly have large active hooligan elements that do not use particular group names.
Scotland Scotland does not have such a strong hooligan element, and any trouble tends to be domestic, rather than exported, as with followers of the England team. - Aberdeen - ASC (Aberdeen Soccer Casuals)
- Airdrie United - Section B (inherited from the city's former club Airdrieonians)
- Hibs - CCS (Capital City Service)
- Motherwell - SS (Saturday Service)
- Rangers - ICF (Inter-City Firm)
- St Mirren - LSD (Love Street Division).
Elsewhere Various Greek and Turkish teams also have a strong hooligan element amongst the fans. Polish hooligans (called szakiwocy, pseudokibice, or kibole) are very strong.
See also
Hooliganism in the media - Red Army General: Leading Britains Biggest Hooligan Gang (book)
- Hooligan (documentary/video)
- Hooligans: Storm Over Europe (PC Video Game)
- Scally: Confessions Of A Category C Football Hooligan (book)
- The Football Factory (book/film)
- Football Hooligans: Knowing the Score (Explorations in Anthropology S.) (book)
- The Family Game: The Untold Story of Hooliganism in Rugby League (book)
- Fighting Fans: Football Hooliganism as a World Phenomenon (book)
- Hooliganism: Crime, Culture and Power in St.Petersburg, 1900-14 (book)
- Football Hooliganism: The Wider Context (book)
- Barmy Army: The Changing Face of Football Violence (book)
- The Roots of Football Hooliganism (book)
- Understanding Soccer Hooliganism (book)
- Trouble On The Terraces (documentary/video)
- Bloody Casuals: Diary of a Football Hooligan (book)
- Naughty: The Story of a Football Hooligan Gang (book)
- The Frontline (book)
- City Psychos: From the Monte Carlo Mob to the Silver Cod Squad (book)
- Rolling with the 6.57 Crew: The True Story of Pompey's Legendary Football Fans; (book)
- Hooligan Wars: Causes and Effects of Football Violence (book)
- Ultra: a 1991 Italian language film that follws a group of AS Roma fans
External links - What is Football Hooliganism? (Source: The football Industry group) (http://www.liv.ac.uk/footballindustry/hooligan.html)
- Interpol Football Hooliganism page (http://www.interpol.com/Public/PublicOrder/hooliganism/Default.asp)
- Troubled Teens (http://www.troubledteenhelp.info)
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