Fan violence in youth football: Experiences and attitudes of young players

Abstract

Researchers have explored different dimensions of fan violence and several aspects of violence in youth sports, but fan violence in youth football remains understudied. This article aims to fill the indicated gap by (a) investigating and mapping the experiences of male youth football players with fan violence and (b) exploring their attitudes towards it. Drawing on 21 individual interviews with youth players, this study identifies different forms of fan violence experienced by young Polish footballers, classified in three categories: game-related violence, peer violence and ricochet violence: everyday dimensions of hooligans’ competitive violence. Additionally, by exploring their attitudes, the study reveals that some forms of fan violence are justified by youth football players through two legitimising strategies: football rivalries-related fan violence as an essential part of football games and territorial logic as justification for assaults on rival fans manifesting their club support. The first strategy reproduces the football-rivalries ideology, which in turn provides legitimisation for violence against rival fans in general. The second strategy places part of the responsibility for violence on victims, who are blamed for not respecting the existing rules, which normalise violent norms.