Causes of Spectator Violence in Sports
Causes of Spectator Violence in Sports As a season ticket holder for all Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia Eagles home games, I’ve seen my fair share of spectator violence over the years. The fact that Philadelphia has a reputation of having some of the rowdiest fans in sports has given me the unfortunate ability to witness spectator violence right before my eyes. There are many different types of spectator violence, as well as many different causes for them. As spectators, we must not only think about the instant repercussions of this violence, but we also need to think about the future repercussions of these actions. As spectator violence is becoming more prevalent in sports, the children spectators are going to start to believe that this is normal, and the violence will continue to worsen. In order to begin to rectify this issue of spectator violence, we must first identify the causes and warning signs. There are many different types of spectator violence. According to Tamara Madensen and John Eck, authors of “The Problem of Spectator Violence in Stadiums, these are the six most common forms of spectator aggression:
1. Verbal – singing, chanting, taunting, etc.
2. Gesturing – signaling to others with threatening or obscene motions.
3. “Missile” throwing – throwing items such as food, drinks, bricks, bottles, broken seats, and cell phones at particular or random targets
4. Swarming – rushing the field or court trying to gain entry, typically resulting in trampling of spectators
5. Property Destruction – either personal property or venue property
6. Physical – spitting, kicking, punching, stabbings, and shootings (1-2)
All of these types of spectator violence can be highly dangerous. The “Missile” throwing and the physical violence are the most prevalent. Spectators are not always the only participants in these altercations. There have been instances where stadium personnel or athletes have been involved in altercations with fans. When this
1. Verbal – singing, chanting, taunting, etc.
2. Gesturing – signaling to others with threatening or obscene motions.
3. “Missile” throwing – throwing items such as food, drinks, bricks, bottles, broken seats, and cell phones at particular or random targets
4. Swarming – rushing the field or court trying to gain entry, typically resulting in trampling of spectators
5. Property Destruction – either personal property or venue property
6. Physical – spitting, kicking, punching, stabbings, and shootings (1-2)
All of these types of spectator violence can be highly dangerous. The “Missile” throwing and the physical violence are the most prevalent. Spectators are not always the only participants in these altercations. There have been instances where stadium personnel or athletes have been involved in altercations with fans. When this
Cited: Appleson, Gail. "Spectator Violence: What they see is what they do?." American Bar Association Journal 68.4 (1982): 404. Business Source Corporate.EBSCO.Web. 10 Oct. 2011 Hall, Stacey A Madenson, Tamara, and John Eck."Spectator Violence in Stadiums."COPS: Problem-Oriented Guides for Police. 54 (2008): 84. page. Web. 10 Oct. 2011. . "Spectator violence cannot be tolerated." Dominion Post, The 20 Sept. 1995: 6. Newspaper Source Plus. EBSCO.Web. 10 Oct. 2011.