CAIRO: The European Champions League, considered by most fans to be the greatest footballing spectacle in the world, has been overshadowed in recent weeks by a spate of football-related violence.
Confrontations between supporters and riot police in Spain, inter-crowd problems in France, and clashes in Italy resulting in the death of a policeman, are just the most recent manifestations of football s long association with violence.
Studies in Britain, Europe and South America point the finger of blame at young, working-class males. Yet casting an eye over Egypt, where the majority of football supporters match this description, football-related violence is conspicuous by its absence.
Well almost.
It does exist in Egypt, says Mohammed Sabe, Egyptian football analyst with Filgoal.com, but not in the organized, institutional way that it does in Britain or Europe – when something happens it is instinctive, not planned.
The types of organized hooliganism common in Britain and Europe, and captured in films such as “The Firm and “Football Factory are scenes alien to the Egyptian game.
According to Dr Matthew Whoolery, Head of the Psychology Department at the American University in Cairo, alcohol is a key factor. A big part of going to games in Europe is getting drunk, he says, and in a big crowd, where peoples inhibitions are already loosened, this can easily lead to violence.
Consumption of alcohol is limited in Egypt, he continues, and generally speaking alcohol or drug-related violence here is extremely rare.
A landmark study in 2001 by the Center for Football Research in Leicester, England, offers a number of sociological explanations for the close relationship between football and violence.
The frustration of poverty, protecting an identity, and the feeling of belonging to something greater than oneself are among the factors outlined in the report. For many fans football takes on something of a religious role.
Ayman Younis, ex-Zamalek and Egypt midfielder, and Egyptian Football Association Board Member, also likens football to religion.
For many people in Egypt football is their only escape from poverty and unemployment, he says. It gives them hope.
Although he agrees that organized hooliganism is non-existent in Egypt, other incidents of football-related violence are common. Younis had his car smashed up by opposition fans and even had people come to his house making threats when he was a player.
My gardener almost quit afterwards, he jokes. My Zamalek teammates had similar experiences, and I know the players at Ahly had these problems too.
Several well-known incidents of football violence punctuate the game s history in Egypt.
The league was cancelled in 1970-71 after violence erupted in an Ahly-Zamalek game; an Egypt-Zimbabwe game had to be replayed in France after crowd violence in 1993; and more recently the home of Zamalek s Chairman, Mortada Mansour, was attacked.
Still, such sporadic outbursts pale in comparison to the regular clashes in the streets and stadiums of Europe.
The security forces in Egypt, and the consequences of getting arrested, are enough to deter most would-be troublemakers, according to Mohammed Sabe.
The authorities here have a reputation for taking a tough approach, he says, which prevents the kind of violence you might see in Europe.
Whoolery agrees. Often in Europe the punishment doesn t fit the crime: someone could be arrested for causing mayhem and get away with it, or possibly pay a small fine. In Egypt it s the other way around – someone could get a harsh sentence for doing far less.
Whether the relative lack of football-related violence in Egypt can be attributed to tough security measures and the absence of alcohol consumption is not yet clear. What is certain is that European football fans have a long way to go to match the behavior of their Egyptian counterparts.
The closing stages of the Champions League will provide Europe with that opportunity.