British Officials Decry Soccer Riot in Sweden

Prime Minister John Major and other British officials on Monday deplored the two nights of violence in Malmo, Sweden, where English soccer fans rioted after England’s games in the European Championships.

Major said “genuine fans” were getting a bad name because of the action of “a few thugs.”

David Mellor, the national heritage minister whose duties include overseeing sports, said Monday that the Malmo violence--which included drunken fans showering police with chair legs, bottles and other missiles--was “dreadful behavior” by hooligans who “have dragged our name through the mud.”

Mellor, who attended England’s 0-0 draw with France on Sunday, said he thought the Swedish plan to serve under-priced weak beer in tents in the city’s main square as a way of controlling rowdy behavior was imprudent.

“A certain type of British soccer fan does not mix with alcohol and behaves appallingly,” he said on his return to London.

Soccer officials indicated that if the rowdy behavior by English fans continued, the future of British teams in European competition will be jeopardized.

The English fans rioted around the Malmo beer tents for two hours Sunday morning and early Monday--fighting with police, breaking shop windows and stealing merchandise in the normally quiet Swedish city, where some games of the European Championships are being played.

Swedish police made about 100 arrests and employed mounted officers and dog patrols to deal with the rioters.

One ringleader was identified as member of the Norwegian neo-Nazi group, Aryan Brotherhood.

“What is wrong with these people?” asked a Malmo policeman. “We welcome them with open arms and treat them as human beings. They repay us by behaving like wild animals.”

England will play Sweden Wednesday in Stockholm and massive police reinforcements are expected to ensure that any violence by English fans is quickly quelled.

Of the riots, Mellor said: “I spent most of the day apologizing to the Swedish authorities. After the welcome they gave the fans, they should not have been paid back in this coin. It is a scar on what had become a better reputation for our fans.”

British police officer Malcolm George, who heads the national soccer intelligence unit, said that reports from undercover police said Saturday night’s violence was planned and that the thugs reacted to a whistle blown by a ringleader.

The British fans have been notorious on the Continent for their violence during major matches and tournaments. They were responsible for the deaths of more than 40 Italian fans during a 1985 European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus of Turin in Brussels, and English teams were barred for several years from competing on the Continent.

Two years ago, 247 English fans were deported by World Cup host Italy after widespread fighting and drunkenness.