Euro 2024: Domestic violence, ultras, and immigrant fans

During international football tournaments, reports of domestic violence tend to increase. For instance, during the 2022 soccer World Cup in Qatar, the British Sussex Police received twice as many emergency calls related to domestic violence. Experts attribute the rise in violence during these tournaments to factors such as increased alcohol and drug consumption, sports betting, and frustrated fans. To address this issue, police across the UK are providing additional support to women during Euro 2024 and collaborating with the Women’s Aid organization.

Ultra groups, which consist of football fans with strong nationalist attitudes, are present at the European Soccer Championship in Germany. The Hungarian Carpathian Brigade is one of them, known for clashing with the police, using racist insults, displaying homophobic banners, and believed to have up to 15,000 members. Radical fans also supported national teams such as Albania, Croatia and Romania, with some displaying flags related to geographic areas like Greater Romania, which denies Moldova’s sovereignty, and also referencing Greater Serbia and Greater Hungary in the stands.

This year’s soccer Euro also saw immigrants showing support for their national teams in the stands, reflecting the diverse population in Germany. Almost 30% of the German population, around 24.9 million people, are immigrants or have at least one immigrant parent. Sixty percent of this group has roots in other European countries. Germany is home to 435,000 Croatians, nearly a million Poles, and almost 3 million immigrants from Turkey or people with Turkish roots.