The tournament saw highest number of football-related arrests in the UK since Euro 2020. There was a shocking rise in incidents of domestic violence, disorder and online hate, police said today
England fans were ‘impeccably behaved’ at the World Cup in the US, police chiefs said today.
But it was a very different picture at home, with the highest number of football-related arrests in the UK since Euro 2020. The World Cup saw a shocking rise in incidents of domestic violence, disorder and online hate.
Mark Roberts, the head of UK Football Policing, warned that alcohol and the relaxation of licensing laws in England, announced with only 48 hours’ notice, contributed to the disturbing rise in violence.
Cheshire Police Chief Constable Mr Roberts said: “The fans’ behaviour at the World Cup was really good again. We have to get rid of the outdated image of our fans based on historical behaviour.
“We asked police to judge our fans on their actions and not any preconceptions and police in the US and Mexico did that. Our fans got into the spirit of it, both England and Scotland fans were there to have a really good time.
“They behaved brilliantly and had a really good impact on the economies in the US and Mexico. England fans knew how to party, too. Arrests were at a really low level.”
There were only 22 arrests at the England World Cup games abroad in total, including ticket touting. But Mr Roberts added: “This was the worst tournament we have seen domestically for some time, the worst since Euro 2020.
“That is a real concern for us as we are hosting the tournament in 2028. Domestic abuse was a real factor. It is not just about football. Alcohol and drugs play a big role. So it is a societal issue, not a footballing one.
“But unfortunately, this has really negative consequences. Online abuse, typically of a racist nature, also increased again. There was a rise in incidents at licensed premises. A significant number were reported to police; there was an additional round so England played an extra game, which needs to be factored in.
“It is the best result in 60 years since winning it, so we saw these problems, even when the team was comparatively successful. So it was a more depressing picture back in the UK.
“We saw the highest number of reported incidents of domestic abuse around tournaments, and there were allegations of spiking in licenced premises. That is something we will examine regarding violence against women and girls. We are looking to learn from this.”
A total of 2,322 incidents were reported to the police, with 391 arrests, the number of incidents rose at pubs and bars as the tournament progressed.
There were 1487 incidents linked to the Russia 2018 World Cup, with 337 arrests; 573 linked to the 2022 tournament in Qatar, and 1302 at Euro 2024, with 321 arrests.
At the delayed Euro 2020 tournament, held in the summer of 2021, there were 2,345 incidents, and 599 arrests, with shocking scenes of violence before the final at Wembley as large numbers of fans tried to get in without tickets.
“We want to make the point that the extension of licensing laws needs to take the consequences of relaxation into account,” added Mr Roberts.
“Please take into account the negative impact as well as the positive. We need to make decisions well in advance so we can implement measures.”
There were stabbings and police stations were attacked as well as the rise in domestic violence, and violence between the fans of Morocco and France in London.
In the US, by contrast, England fans helped make their games a “memorable experience” for the host cities. Mr Roberts praised the work of the FA and the Football Supporters Association in keeping fans informed while travelling abroad.
It was estimated that around 10,000 to 13,000 fans travelled from the UK to our group games in the US, with a huge number also travelling to Mexico for the round of 32 game at the famous Azteca stadium.
There were around 2,500 official fan club members at the Argentina game, but the numbers were boosted by ex-pat and US fans wearing the team colours.
