Fan violence related to professional soccer matches in Germany leads to costs of nearly €44 million (US$50 million) annually, according to a report published by Germany’s Ifo Institute on Wednesday.
The study looked at data from German municipalities from January 2011 to May 2015 in which fan violence ended up costing German police, public prosecution offices and courts a total of €194 million.
The report added that instances of violence rose considerably in cities when they hosted professional football matches, with an estimated 38,268 soccer-related assaults taking place over the period studied.
The increase in violence was found to be “particularly high” on matchdays featuring local derbies.
“First to third division soccer matches in these cities lead to 21.5 per cent more acts of violence than would otherwise be expected on those days of the week,” said Helmut Rainer, director of the Ifo Center for Labor and Demographic Economics.
“The victims are mainly young men between the ages of 18 and 29. But almost one-fifth of the additional violence on game days can be explained by attacks on police officers.
“It’s not events during the matches or the match results that are the trigger, but rather a desire to be recognized as a member of a fan group.”
The registered acts of violence were taken from crime statistics published by the police.
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