Will Rome Burn Their Champions League Hosting Chances?

I took British history my senior year in college and I had to write a term paper. Imagine my surprise when the professor tells me that since I love beer and football, he told me that I could write my paper about hooliganism.

When I started my research on it, I cam across Among The Thugs. The book opened my eyes to how violent the supporters of football can be. Especially Italian fans.

I was not surprised when I was sitting around the t.v. in my friends dorm room watching the quater-final tie between Manchester United and Roma.

The camera panned across the bleachers and there were Roma fans and the local police attacking the Manchester fans. There was violence again in the past years competition. Five United fans were stabbed in the capital.

This level of violence has led to UEFA president Michele Platini issuing a statement that if the violence continues UEFA will consider moving the venue.

Roma and Chelsea are going to be in the same group for the group stages. Will their be violence again this year? Probably. Is it right for Platini to pull the final from Rome for something that has went on for years? I don't think so.

Violence in Italian football is something that will continue regardless of Platini's decision.

Apart from the violence that occurred in European play, there was violence within the country as well and this is not being brought to light in the argument. And this is not the first time United fans have faced violence in Italy. United fans faced the same level of violence when they played Juventus in the European Cup.

At the end of the day, what is the appropriate level of violence that can occur before the authorities step in?

No violence would be amazing but that is not going to happen. Fans are going to turn out in force and support their teams and verbally and physically assault opposing fans. While this violence is almost non—existent in America and not as prevelant in the U.K. as it once was, the rest of the world will not catch on as easily.

The supporter groups in Italy are tied in to the political scene as well, so it goes without saying that rivalries are going to be slightly stronger than the normal supporter group that shows up at the pub on Saturday for a pint before the match.

Taking the final away won't solve the problem, and while it may stall it, it will only come back, possibly stonger than the last time. Fans are going to get hurt at matches, that's a given and nothing that UEFA does will stop it.