At The18, we have covered many stories about soccer hooliganism and match abandoments around the world - from the biggest rivalries in soccer, to the worst instances of fans rioting on the pitch, to street brawls outside stadiums (some of them very strange indeed). When you see these instances of hooliganism on video, it can be entertaining and crazy, but the latest instance in Spain shows that these disputes between overly loyal soccer fans can also result in disaster.
For those that haven’t seen or heard, last weekend about 200 Atlético Madrid and Deportivo la Coruña hooligans decided to stage a fight before the match, which resulted in three people getting stabbed, 11 others being injured, and one fan ultimately being killed and thrown into a river. Below is a quick snippet of the fight, followed by the footage of the hooligans dumping the body into a river (21 second mark):
Here is where the fans dump the body in the river (at around :21).
The man killed was 43-year-old Fracisco Javier Romero Taboada, and according to the AS, the police have obtained footage of the beating that eventually killed Taboada. Atletico have decided to ban every member from the ‘Frente Atletico,’ which is the clubs largest support group, while Diportivo closed the section of the stadium to the support group that Taboada belonged to (Riazor Blues) for the next two games.
Now, police have discovered that the entire fight was planned and it was based off of the Russian hooligan pre-planned fights. You remember these fights? The ones where there are rules (no weapons) and at the end of the fight they awkwardly shake hands? Well, apparently the fans in Spain missed the part where stabbing and killing people along with dumping them in rivers is completely out of bounds. By the way for those who didn’t know, these orchestrated fights are the norm in Russia and happen all the time (which is insane).
Tragically, this isn’t the only death this week that has come at the hands of soccer hooliganism. In Argentina, Tiro Federal and Chacarita Juniors played in an Argentine third division match which was abandoned. After Tiro was up 3-1 in the 75th minute, a brawl broke out ending in eight red cards. Tiro player Franco Nieto was walking to his car with his wife and infant when Chacarita hooligans approached him and beat him. Neto died two days after the instance, making him the 15th person to die in a football related death this year in Argentina.
To these hooligans we say: IT’S A GAME and you're treating it like war. Hooliganism culture has been a part of footballing for a long time, but it is getting out of control and the way it is being handled around the world is simply unacceptable. It's time for the removal of hooligans from the game.
Related content from The18:
Fans Light Up Emirates Stadium In Unwelcome Display
Match Abandoned After Drone Carrying Flag Sparks Fight (WATCH)
