Euro 2000 is supposed to be about soccer, but there are great fears that a hooligan invasion ù particularly from England and Germany ù could spoil everything. Authorities say theyÆll handle everything outside stadiums; can the Dutch do the job on the field?
Carleroi saw the footage from Copenhagen and shrieked. Brussels has experienced trouble before. Rotterdam, too, is well-versed in the horrors of hooliganism.
But as the start of the 11th European Championship nears, there exists guarded optimism that the flares of violence across the continent in recent months won’t erupt the next few weeks in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Such faith may be misplaced ù everyone knows that. Authorities and tournament organizers promise they’re prepared for any situation, but after Copenhagen, after Istanbul, after all the little fracases in England and Belgium and Italy, the prevailing mood is this: anguished hope that Euro 2000, ultimately, is about soccer.
The 16-nation festival, second only to the World Cup in popularity, promises the usual on the field: a few very good teams, a few very bad games and a surprise or two to keep it interesting.
Off the field, there could be trouble.
“If [troublemakers] can be isolated, I have no worries,” says Robert Waseige, Belgium’s coach. “But if there’s some sort of international organization which is looking to exploit the event for its own ends, that would worry me, especially if they’re politicized by extreme right-wing elements.”
An April survey indicated that 53 percent of Dutch believed a large-scale riot would accompany the June 10-July 2 event. Tournament officials acknowledge they expect “minor skirmishes.”
BATTLE OF CHARLEROI. Fears were heightened after pitched battles between English and Turkish fans broke out at a UEFA Cup semifinal in Istanbul and the final in Copenhagen, but the threat of violence has seemed very real since England and Germany were drawn together last December.
The showdown occurs June 17 in Charleroi, the center of French-speaking Belgium, and the action in the streets could be heavier than in Charleroi’s Communal. Both nations suffer from the hooligan problem, especially abroad, and expectations are that as many as 50,000 English ù 20,000 more than capacity and 45,000 more than England’s ticket allotment ù and 10,000 Germans will descend on the city.
“I am closing before, during and after the game,” said Sylvio Corona, who owns a tavern near Charleroi’s rail station. “Three-quarters of us are doing the same. The guy next door to me is closing down for a week.
“What’s the point in taking the risk of having your shop smashed in?”
Shopkeepers in the other cities ù Brussels, Bruges and Liege in Belgium, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Eindhoven and Arnhem in the Netherlands ù may follow suit. Laws restricting alcohol sales have been passed in both countries, but an all-out ban on drink (or soft drugs, in the Netherlands) is not in the works.
Security officials have instead focused on stopping hooligans before they get to the Netherlands or Belgium, on preparations should trouble break out, and on an elaborate ticket-identification system meant to keep things peaceful inside the stadiums.
Both nations have resumed border checkpoints for the length of the tournament, and Germany has instituted passport controls to prevent known troublemakers from traveling abroad during Euro 2000.
Police from England, Germany, Sweden, France and Portugal are assisting their Dutch and Belgian colleagues, particularly with intelligence. Security forces have trained for every eventuality, and authorities promise their presence will be felt.
“There will be police everywhere, day and night,” exclaimed Brussels mayor Francois-Xavier De Donnea, who plans to keep fans out of the Grand Place, his city’s historic square. “If anyone so much as lifts a finger, he’ll be arrested.”
Finger-raisers will pay stiff fines and serve extended jail time ù penalties have been doubled and tripled for hooligan-related crime. To expedite proceedings, a special prosecutor has been assigned to each of the Dutch venues, and Belgium has set up a special court in Brussels.
Only one of the four Dutch venues, Arnhem, plans to exhibit matches on a large screen in public, and England’s games won’t be shown. Only arrested hooligans will get to watch games on a big screen in Amsterdam ù one will be placed in the holding area, but none in the open city.
Officials screened applicants for tickets and discarded suspected hooligans, and most tickets will carry the name of the purchaser, as at the 1994 World Cup. Identities will be checked entering stadiums, tournament director Alain Courtois said, only of people “behaving in a provocative manner or who look suspicious.”
Ticket-scalping is illegal in Belgium but permitted in the Netherlands, and UEFA proposals to change Dutch law were rebuffed.
Trouble could impact the selection of the 2006 World Cup host, to be made July 6. England and Germany are among five finalists, and riots won’t help their cause.
THE FAVORITES. Neither Germany ù the reigning champion ù nor England, both traditional powers, are among the favorites to capture the title. The Germans, in particular, are in crisis, have been since Croatia’s rout at the ’98 World Cup. Theirs is a flairless squad, and few talented youngsters are on the horizon.
“Every problem is dealt with in a naive, ridiculous and short-sighted manner,” declared former international Paul Breitner, whose criticism of the German federation (DFB) cost him the national team coaching job. “For the whole two years since the World Cup disaster there has been a lot of talking, but nothing has been learned nor done.”
“What I’m hoping from Germany,” DFB chief Egidius Braun said, “is that they will please us. … You can please even when you lose.”
Another slumping giant is Italy, which should suffer mightily from Christian Vieri’s absence. Few of the entrants have looked consistently strong during preparations.
The Dutch, boasting an enormously talented team and likely to gain more from home-field advantage than the unfancied Belgians, are formidable favorites. Coach Frank Rijkaard, a pivotal player in the Dutch team that won the 1988 European title, has superb options ù with most of his players at or near the primes of their careers and competing for Europe’s top clubs ù at every position.
“For this generation of footballers, it is the perfect situation,” Rijkaard said. “The conditions are in place for them to play a great tournament.”
France, with a stronger team than that which won the World Cup two years ago, may provide the stiffest challenge. A Group D showdown with the Netherlands, June 21 in Amsterdam, is the highlight of the first-round schedule. The final, July 2 at the Feyenoord Stadium in Rotterdam, could be a rematch.
The other top challenger is Spain, Europe’s most notorious underachiever but a talented team in great form.
“We have no record to defend,” says Jose Antonio Camacho, the Spaniards’ coach. “Until we’ve won a major event, we can’t be regarded as favorites.”
Portugal and Yugoslavia and perhaps England are the dark horses, and any number of nations ù Czech Republic, Norway, even Turkey ù is capable of pulling an upset or two.
SENTIMENTAL LEANINGS. Those with sentimental leanings may cheer for German libero Lothar Matthaeus, or Romanian playmaker Gheorghe Hagi, or English striker Alan Shearer. They’re bidding farewell ù internationally, at least ù when Euro 2000 is done. Others ù Yugoslavia’s Dragan Stojkovic, Germany’s Thomas Haessler, probably France’s Laurent Blanc ù will do likewise.
The ingredients are present for an outstanding tournament. The great hope is that Euro 2000 will be remembered for what happens on the field.
by Soccer America senior editor Scott French