When the Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) invites people to the summit under the heading “Violence in Football” in Munich this Friday as chairman of the Conference of Sports Ministers, one cannot blame him for one thing: that he did not advertise enough for the event The aim is to improve security in and around football stadiums. For weeks he has been talking about a whole potpourri of drastic measures in interviews, the possible application of which he wants to discuss with the invited top representatives of the German Football Association (DFB) and the German Football League (DFL): collective punishments! Quick meals! Ghost games! Game cancellations!
The most daring formulations included the most recent one in a conversation with the German Press Agency, One should take an example from other leagues in Europe, such as Italy (when it comes to stadium bans and partial exclusions of violent fans). Wait, Italy? Where fan exclusions are actually common and sometimes provide rigorous security, but the notorious violence problems in the ultra scene are still acute and diverse? This raises the question of how much tact Herrmann handles the matter with.
Now, first of all, it’s good that the interior ministers are looking for an exchange with football in order to agree on security in the stadium. The fact that no fan representatives are invited provokes criticism from the relevant fan organizations, but is also plausible in the case when it comes to appointments with the organizers. The fact that the timing seems unfortunate, because stadium violence in the Bundesliga was recently an acute issue a few months ago, is probably due to the complicated scheduling.
In terms of content, the tone taken by Herrmann (and, among others, his Bremen colleague Ulrich Mäurer from the SPD) is neither surprising nor helpful. As much as some regional conflicts between fans have escalated in an ugly way, the figures from the police’s Central Information Center for Sports Operations (ZIS) do not show a general, significant increase in violence on match days. According to the latest figures from the 2022/23 season, the number of injured people rose from 1,127 to 1,176 compared to the pre-Corona 2018/19 season (in relation to the number of visitors to 0.0052 percent).
It is of course necessary to adapt to a fan milieu that is sometimes prone to violence in order to continue to ensure stadium safety. But there is broad consensus among those involved in the issue that the way to get there is not just harsher punishments, let alone their loud announcement, but rather through preventative measures and an objective approach to the problems.
Maybe you shouldn’t expect too much from the meeting in Munich. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) canceled her participation at short notice due to discussions in the Bundestag.
