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World Cup violence against English fans 'guaranteed'

The safety of English fans at next year's World Cup is under serious threat, according to a BBC d...



World Cup violence against Eng...
Soccer

World Cup violence against English fans 'guaranteed'

The safety of English fans at next year's World Cup is under serious threat, according to a BBC documentary which features Russian hooligans threatening violence.

Violent clashes between English and Russian fans marred stages of the Euros that were in Marseilles last year, and the ructions are '100% guaranteed' to resume when Russia host the World Cup next year.

That's according to members of Russian hooligan armies that feature in a BBC 2 documentary which is due to be aired tonight. 

Members of the 'Orel Butchers' were involved in the violence in Marseilles and a preview of this documentary features the leader of the group recalling the skirmishes with the British supporters.

"I would say a lot of British guys went over to France to have some fun, to shout around, to throw some glasses. We were quite determined to go down and mess up with the British guys. It's like 200 professionals fighting 2000 amateurs." 

He goes on to say that more clashes will be inevitable at the World Cup.

"They can come over, we'll see. I mean, somebody will obviously try to do something that is 100% guaranteed."

Ironically, the Russian hooligans hold their British opponents in high esteem and appear to regard the hostilities as being of a purely militaristic nature.

One former hooligan who featured in the preview, says that Holligan groups in Russia used the hooligan model in Britain as their inspiration and said that 'it was always an honour to clash with them.'

Another preview clip shows hooligans engaging in an intense gym session, preparing for next year's tournament. They often fight in pre-arranged brawls against rival groups that are known as 'Forest Fights.'

They keep the locations of these fights a secret, in order to avoid detection from the police.

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