New base for MMA proposed in Russia – hooliganism

The primary bases for mixed martial arts are well understood – wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, and boxing, with a smattering of fighters from karate, Judo, Sambo, and others. However, one of the leading figures in Russian MMA, M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelstein, believes he has discovered a new base – soccer hooliganism.

The former manager of Fedor Emelianenko plans to host an event featuring a fight between two fans of rival Russian soccer teams. M-1 Challenge 74 on February 18 in St. Petersburg will feature fights between fans of arch-rival Russian soccer teams, CSKA and Spartak, squaring-off in full team colors. The winner will determined the strongest soccer fans, under MMA rules, rather than the more usual street brawls.

Finkelstein discusses and defends the project in an interview with Russia Today.

“We created the whole concept as a social project,” explained the great spirit. “Some might ask why? Well, there are a lot of strong, young guys out there with no way to channel their energy. So we are setting an example to them of, ‘Go to the gyms, start competing as a pro to make some money, don’t fight on the streets. If you are really tough, really strong, start your career and make a living out of it. Don’t go looking for trouble. That’s why we see it as a good example for these kids!”

The phenomenon of soccer violence can be traced back to 14th-century England. At that time, soccer was a violent, unruly activity involving rival villages kicking a pig’s bladder across the local heath.

In 1314, Edward II banned “football” because he believed the disorder surrounding matches might lead to social unrest, or even treason. Conflict at an 1846 match in Derby, England, required a reading of the “riot act” and two groups of police squads to effectively respond to the disorderly crowd.

The first recorded instances of soccer hooliganism in the modern game occurred during the 1880s in England, a period when gangs of supporters would intimidate neighborhoods, in addition to attacking referees, opposing supporters, and players. In 1885, after Preston North End beat Aston Villa 5–0 in a friendly match, both teams were pelted with stones, attacked with sticks, punched, kicked and spat at. One Preston player was beaten so severely that he lost consciousness and press reports at the time described the fans as “howling roughs.” The following year, Preston fans fought Queen’s Park fans in a railway station—the first alleged instance of football hooliganism outside of a match. In 1905, a number of Preston fans were tried for hooliganism, including a “drunk and disorderly” 70-year-old woman, following their match against Blackburn Rovers.

The phenomenon only started to gain the media’s attention in the late 1950s due to the re-emergence of violence in Latin American soccer. In the 1955–56 English football season, Liverpool and Everton fans were involved in a number of incidents and, by the 1960s, an average of 25 hooligan incidents were being reported each year in England. The label “football hooliganism” first began to appear in the English media in the mid-1960s, leading to increased media interest in, and reporting of, acts of disorder. It has been argued that this in turn created a ‘moral panic’ out of proportion with the scale of the actual problem.

Soccer hooliganism has become prevalent in Russia since the beginning of the 1970s, and Russian hooligans are among the most notorious in the world.

Source: Wiki