An analysis of football-related violence by England and Russia fans during the 2016 European Championship

This project examines football-related violence by providing an analysis of media portrayals of football-related violence by England and Russia fans during the 2016 European Championship. When incidences of football-related violence began to occur at the tournament, the complex and dynamic phenomenon rose in salience and returned to the fore. Whilst most of the dominant views on the subject came from the second half of the last century, the incidences of violence at Euro 2016 appeared to go beyond the peculiarities of the heavily structured British social class system which the early established schools of thought are heavily reliant upon. Building on Stuart Hall’s mass media approach, this project argues that the 2016 European Championship was a demonstration that the mass media, through amplification, holds the influence to frame the discussion and most importantly the perception of football-related violence at elite level as well as for the general population. Through the chronological examination of a selection of print media sources, the themes of securitisation, cultural differences, sensationalisation and amplification are explored. It is from the findings of this examination that the ways in which the media’s influence amplifies the phenomenon are highlighted. This project concludes by exploring some of the wider implications of this research both in policy terms and as potential future avenues of research, specifically the management of crowds at future major sporting events and how the influence the mass media holds must be taken into account and subject to much greater scrutiny.