Violence Forces Suspension of Football Match in Marseille: Europe’s Troubled Season Continues
Photo Courtesy: Screenshot from Prime Video game broadcast
Last October 29th, the “Choc des Olympiques” between Marseille and Lyon, much anticipated despite the latter team’s very poor start of the season, was to take place in the South of France. The game was suspended before it even began, another violent episode ruining the fun for 65,000 people in attendance.
Upon arrival, Lyon’s team bus was stoned by a handful of Marseille fans a few streets away from the Vélodrome stadium, an hour before kickoff. Windows were shattered and Lyon coach Fabio Grosso was seriously injured after receiving a beer bottle in the face.
A picture of the Italian coach’s face covered in blood quickly leaked on social media, revealing the extent of his shocking injury. Indeed, the attack cost him twelve stitches along his face from his eyebrow to his cheekbone, mild brain damage, and could have blinded him in one eye.
Simultaneously, buses leading the away fans to the stadium were also stoned. The senseless violence reached alarming heights when the Lyonnais entered their assigned stand. Some of them directed Nazi salutes at the home fans, as well as monkey chants and a multitude of racial slurs. A few were seen climbing the visitors’ area protective net when the stadium speaker finally announced the suspension of the game. This likely averted further chaos.
The following Monday, news broadcast BMFTV recounted nine arrests whilst the number one French sports newspaper L’Équipe’s front headline showed the graphic picture of Grosso’s blood-spattered face. The title “Disgust and Shame” could be read in bold capitals.
These incidents, however, are far from being isolated. Throughout this season in France and across Europe, professional men’s football has been repeatedly sullied by acts of violence.
The list is long. To name a few, nine men were arrested in Newcastle last week following fights between Dortmund and Newcastle fans. In early October, a game between Montpellier and Clermont was suspended after a fan threw a firecracker which exploded right next to the Clermont goalkeeper, who collapsed and was carried off the pitch on a stretcher. However, the worst happened last August in Greece: hundreds of fans of AEK Athens and Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb brawled in the streets of Athens, threw numerous projectiles and used improvised bats, resulting in the death of a 29-year-old Greek man.
Although this season has been marked by such violence, it is difficult to talk of a recent resurgence or to establish a clear trend across Europe. For example, if football-related arrests in England and Wales have slightly risen from 2,198 in 2021/2022 to 2,264 in 2022/2023, the number remains inferior to the 2,273 of 2013/2014. Similarly in France, 608 people were arrested in 2021/2022 versus 689 in 2018/2019. If no drastic increase can be noted, such occurrences sadly remain common.
Aleksander Čeferin, the president of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), condemned the incident in Athens, calling to “eliminate the cancer” of hooliganism. To this day, the tackling of these issues remains very difficult, and actions taken by league associations and UEFA have had a limited, insufficient impact. These acts of violence have different roots, ranging from alcohol and drug consumption to political oppositions, regional antagonisms or simply sports rivalries, thus making the finding of large-scale solutions very challenging.
As violence remains a well-established pattern in football and such events still happen often in 2023, overwhelming majorities of peaceful fans continue to be punished because of actions of a minority. The picture of a disheartened child staring in the void in the emptying stands of the Vélodrome stadium last Sunday moved thousands on social media. The “beautiful game” immediately loses its magnificence when it mirrors the ills of society. A lot of work lies ahead for football authorities who too often appear powerless.