Media Impact On Soccer Hooliganism example essay topic

Soccer Hooliganism The problem of soccer hooliganism has its roots deep in social development and is associated with aggression and maturation rituals. Furthermore, the media has negatively impacted the problem by publicizing, and exaggerating hooligan activities. Although the exact definition of hooliganism is rather open-ended, it can be characterized as violence toward opposing fans, players, and refs or destruction of objects inside or around the stadium. Violent incidents that occur following a game that fans perpetrate are also often considered acts of hooliganism (Soccer 2). What we know today as hooliganism began in Britain in the late nineteen-sixties.

Riots, field invasions, beatings, and deaths were characterized by the media as "football hooligans", and thus came era of violence to soccer. As shocking as the violence was at that time, soccer and violence have gone hand and hand since the thirteenth century. The game used to be played for a variety of reason disputes over land, conflicts between neighboring tribes or just simply to engage in manly aggression. Often times in Scotland, a "football" match was a precursor to a raid into a neighboring town.

Since this time, soccer has been refined greatly especially in 1828, when Dr. Thomas Arnold established formal rules for the game. The game continued to be refined, and was seen as a game of the upper class until the game gained popularity with the middle class in the early twentieth century. (Soccer 4) Although sporadic violence occurred from 1900 to 1960, it was attributed to nothing more than overzealous, or drunk fans. In the 1964 soccer season, fan began to take on a rather peculiar pastime called "taking ends", where fans on one side of the stadium would rush the opposing fans's ide and try to take control of their section. These acts of violence, team identification, and ritual aggression developed in a few short years into the social epidemic of soccer hooliganism. (Soccer 7) So what has caused these soccer fans to become hooligans?

This question has been the cause of major debate in the sociological community. There have been many different opinions to the cause hooliganism, however many of the theories are somewhat compatible with each. One proposed cause is retaliation against the professionalization of soccer. During the 1950's and 1960's soccer developed from a sport that was played by local soccer clubs, to a spectator sport where fans watched professional athletes. It is thought that this change in the sport may have alienated many fans making them feel excluded from their favorite sport and pass time (Taylor 32). Sociologist Ian Taylor states that feelings of alienation may cause hooliganism, which is a symbolic attempt to regain control of game from wealthy upper class that now control the sport (Taylor 34).

Hooliganism attempts to regain some sense of inclusion in the sport by instead of being players, they support their team by cheering and in general show support. The charters of "supporter ship" seem to present however; hooligans fail to abide by social behavior that is acceptable in the stadium situation (Clarke, 12). In general hooligans are attempting to identify with their team like other fans, however their show of support does not fall within acceptable social realms. And sometimes they are involved in competition of their own in the stands. "While the points are being won or lost on the field, territory is won or lost in the terraces (stands). The "ends" away record (how good it is at taking territory where the home supporters usually stand) is as important, if not more, than their team's away record.

Similarly the chants, slogans and songs demonstrate support for the team and involve an effort to intervene in the game itself, by lifting and encouraging their team, and putting off the opposition... The violence between the sets of fans is part of this participation in the game - part of the extension of the game on the field to include the terraces too". (Clarke 12) There are other theories as to what causes hooliganism. John Clarke a Sociologist at the University of Birmingham feels that hooliganism is also an attempt by youths to resolve conflicts in their lives. These acts of hooliganism are an attempt to retaliate against being in a lower social position.

The hooligans are trying to rebel against their subordinate positions against adults, and most often rebelling against their subordinate positions in the working class (Clark 14). Hooliganism is not just retaliation against social position; it is also an opportunity for hooligans to obtain a feeling of personal worth. For youths with a little educational background, in a lower social position, in is a chance to gain status in a different social arena (Marsh 42). The stands become a new sight for identity construction, an alternative to career structuring, or education structuring. The difference is that here the youths have an opportunity to succeed, where they often failed in other social situations. Some sociologists contend that hooliganism is not violent mayhem and chaos.

Hooliganism is perceived to be "highly structured, and highly ritualized". Acts of hooliganism are guided by social rules that exist in the stadium, and hooligans do no often break the pattern of their social surroundings. Acts of hooliganism are timed, cunning, insightful, and often times there are strategies which hooligans use to make a successful attack, or ambush opposing teams, and fans. Hooligan acts display a "manly virtue" through ritual aggression, a practice that is often seen as similar to tribal warfare (Marsh 44)". Football... is not simply a meeting between two teams, for the fans it is an opportunity to act out ritual aggression and confrontation". Hooliganism is considered highly ritualized because of several aspects that are most often present in many soccer matches.

Soccer allows for identification with language and symbols that are conducive to the sport. Symbolic gestures, chants and insults transform the game into symbolic confrontation between the two opposing fan groups. There is far more talk about violence than there is actually violence, however the opposing fan bases are usually involved in confrontation that stems from "supporter ship" and rituals of aggression and confrontation (Dal Lago 9). Participation in hooligan violence by the individual is based on three factors.

First the fan needs to have a high level of identification with their team. Secondly they usually have lower educational achievement, and thirdly they need to have a similar goals or feelings with other supporters (Dal Lago 13). These are the base factors that effect personal involvement in hooliganism, but in order to have hooligan activity at soccer matches, one of two things need to be present. Either their needs to be a preexisting rivalry between two teams, or a development in the game that is unfavorable by the audience, such as a ref making a bad call or a un-carded foul by a player on an opposing team (Dal Lago 14).

Old rivalries and bad calls are only a small part of what causes hooligans to commit these acts. There are much broader social forces, which greatly impact hooliganism and what causes it. Many sociologists feel that the media has played a large role in the societal problem of soccer hooliganism (Cohen 21)". Football hooliganism shifted, in part, from a ritual to a more dangerous pattern of behavior principally because of the inappropriate measures which were introduced to combat the problem and because of the extensive media distortion of true events at football matches".

(Marsh 46) In the 1960's the British newspapers and television highly sensationalized the phenomenon of hooliganism. The media constructed hooliganism as mindless "thuggery", chaotic, and riotous. Accounts of hooliganism we depicted by journalists as animalist, less than human, drunken brawling, and vicious (Cohen 22). Although the media was constantly reporting on the problem, there were actually very few and secluded events of hooliganism.

The media by over publicizing the problem had guided the public concern about the happenings. These smell incidents were constructed by the media as a major societal problem, and the media even went so far as to try to offer explanations to the problem. The roots of the problems were seen as drunkenness, and loss of control, which they may have been however, the over publication of the problem increased incidents of hooliganism and even made it worse (Cohen 24). The media had guided the majority of public concern, which caused for an over reaction from the public to the problem. Public debate about hooliganism was based almost solely on media over-dramatized accounts.

The huge rise in public concern to a minor deviance created a hooliganism scare. Stadium owners struggled to install safety measures in stadiums like cages or segregation of opposing fans, but these safety measures often enraged the hooligans even more, creating even more of a problem (Cohen 26). This was not the only problem that media involvement had created in hooliganism. The highly publicized accounts of hooliganism had created a new forum where hooligans compete.

Hooligans that supported different teams would compete for headlines in newspapers, one hooligan chant was "We are the famous hooligans, read all about us!" (Cohen 28) The media has also negatively impacted the sport of soccer by "predicting" acts of hooliganism. The media has predicted acts of hooliganism before certain games, and hooligans directed by media influence have made good on predictions of hooliganism. Some hooligans began acting out thing that the media had accused them of, even if they were not previously guilty of the crime. "If they are going to call us animals, and savages then we might as well act like them", (Cohen 28). The media is definitely not completely to blame here. There are definitely other social factors that are at work in hooliganism.

However they do play a role in the problem. Stanley Cohen, a sociologist that has studied the media impact on soccer hooliganism, made this statement about media involvement: "I do think that there is a major problem about the way the press has selected, presented and defined football hooliganism over the years... I don't think that the problem of hooliganism would all go away if only the press would keep it's collective mouth shut or look the other way. I do however believe that the phenomenon know as "football hooliganism" is not the simple "Savages!

Animals! story that has substantially been presented by the press" (Cohen 33) Now that some of the causes of hooliganism have been explained and medias role has been uncovered lets take a look at a soccer theoretical match. First we will start out describing the scenario on game day. A rather large crowd has gathered and the soccer grounds are nearly full. The crowd consists manly of home team supporters, however the crowd still has a considerable percentage of visiting team supporters.

Both sections of supporter partake in the drinking of alcohol, cheering, and giving overall support to their team. It is at this point in the game, if not earlier that symbolic language and gestures are developed to both cheer on their team, while insulting and degrading the opposing team. Also, there is competition between fans on the same side to be the biggest supporter of their team. Each side engages in ritual aggression, except instead of using violence at this point, they use aggressive words, and gestures.

As the game progresses the intensity and animosity of the crowd intensifies as they continue to identify with their team. Today the tension is especially high because there exists a rivalry between the two teams, similar to the rivalry between the Oneonta and Norwich football teams. The game continues to be aggressive with slogans, chants and symbolic gestures. Consider in the final five minutes of the game with the score tied, a referee makes a bad call, which immediately brings the crowd to its feet. Minutes later a second bad call is made, and some already standing fans make a rush at the field, assaulting players and refs. The opposing fans feeling support for their team as begin to rush not only to protect their team, but also to symbolically prove man hood.

The press that was present at the event over dramatizes what happen, and the incident begins to raise concern in the community. Fearing more bad publicity and violence, the stadium owners install safety measures to prevent riots, such as fences, cages, and segregation of opposing fans. The Fan now feel boxed in, in the stands. The next time the game becomes tumultuous fans have now where to go. They break down barricades and try to attack opposing players, or flee. This incident is even more violent than the last and causes further exploitation from the media.

The only difference now is that hooligans are stereotyped and have something to prove next time there is a squabble. This theoretical situation shows some aspects of how ritual aggression and media embellishment have created a problem. Although the background circumstance of all hooligan acts are different, the majority of the cases do show some commonality, which has allowed sociologists to develop theories to explain the behavior of hooligans. These theories that may explain or partially explain hooliganism, can be categorized into three main opinions. First hooliganism is an attempt to construct an identity by retaliating against suppressors, and by succeeding in being a "fan", when they cannot succeed in being most other things in life. Secondly hooliganism is simply a way that modern man acts out ritual aggression similar to war in the past.

Also, hooliganism provides a way for juveniles to prove their maturation. Thirdly hooliganism was only a slight problem in juvenile deviance until that media sensationalized the sport, which in term popularized hooliganism.

Bibliography

Clark, John. Football and working class fans: Tradition and change. London: Inter-Action, 1978 Cohen, Stanley.
Folk Devils and Moral Panics. London: Paladin, 1971 Dal Lago, Alessandro.
Italian football fans: Culture and Organisation. London: Routledge, 1994 Marsh, Peter.
Rules in the organization of action: Empirical studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983'Soccer Violence in Europe.
Social Issue Research Center. web Online. 5 may 2002 Taylor, Ian.
Class, violence and sport: The case of soccer hooliganism in Britain. ' Sport, Culture and the State. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1982.