sports violence articles

'It seems to be more extreme': Violent sports fans are causing alarm at every level

From high schools to the pros, there are nearly daily incidents of abusive behavior in the stands. what is behind it.

On Saturday, a  violent brawl in the stands at a Mexican soccer game left more than two dozen people injured and led to 14 arrests. 

On Sunday, an unidentified fan told an Iowa basketball player to kill himself after he missed a free throw near the end of a loss to Illinois. 

On Monday, Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook talked about not wanting to bring his kids to NBA games , because of the terrible things they'll likely hear fans say about their dad.

And on Tuesday, a fight between spectators delayed the Northeast Conference men's championship game between Bryant and Wagner.

"Athletic competition should bring out the best in us," the league's commissioner, Noreen Morris, said in a statement the next day . "Sadly, we didn’t see that last night."

The four-day stretch prompts a question that has been simmering at all levels of sports for decades but come to the forefront over the past year, as fans have returned to arenas and stadiums after the worst of COVID-19. 

Are sports fans getting more aggressive, more abusive, more downright violent?

To Karissa Niehoff, the chief executive officer of the National Federation of State High School Associations, it sure seems that way.

"We've noticed, anecdotally, a rapid rise" in instances of aggressive or abusive behavior at high school sporting events, she said in a phone interview.

"It seems to be more frequent, and it seems to be more extreme," she continued. "So it’s not just somebody was swearing at the official. We’re now having bench-clearing brawls at a greater number than we’ve seen. Physical assaults. ... We’re just seeing, more commonly, a more extreme example of bad sportsmanship."

There is little public data available on the rates of arrests or ejections at sports venues, according to Murray State professor of psychology Daniel Wann, who has been studying the issue for more than three decades. And even the most comprehensive datasets couldn't account for every vulgar taunt directed at an athlete, or stray object thrown.

So it's difficult to say, empirically, whether instances of fan misbehavior have increased over a certain period of time, Wann said. But theoretically, it would make sense.

"Civility is going down in our society. Empathy is going down in our society," Wann said. "Why would you expect anything different in the stands?"

Wann described the bleachers at a sporting event as a unique tinderbox for aggression. There are two diametrically opposed groups of people, many with a deep emotional attachment to the performance of their team. Large crowds, which can lend themselves to mob mentalities or embolden individual fans to go rogue, with a belief that they'll never be caught or identified by security.

And then, in many cases, you've got alcohol.

"There's a strong connection between drinking and fan misbehavior," Harvard professor Henry Wechsler said in 2003 . "When you win, you're supposed to drink to celebrate, and when you lose, you're supposed to cry in your beer."

It was on Ten Cent Beer Night, after all, that fans stormed the field in one of the most infamous incidents of fan aggression at a baseball game in Cleveland in 1974 – which also illustrates that fan misbehavior is hardly a new phenomenon.

Nor is it limited to certain sports, or certain levels of competition.

After fans returned to sports venues en masse last year, the NBA saw a string of abusive and aggressive incidents , from popcorn being dumped on Westbrook's head to a water bottle being thrown at Kyrie Irving. At a Tennessee football game, fans threw a variety of objects – including a mustard bottle and a golf ball  – onto the field. And in the United Kingdom, the country's "football policing unit" reported a 47% increase in arrests at soccer games this season over the same period in 2019-20.

Meanwhile, at the high school level, Niehoff ticked off a number of recent incidents in a newsletter distributed last month , from a referee being knocked unconscious at a tournament to a student shouting racist comments at an opposing player.

Even a youth basketball league in the small town of Rome, New York, had to cancel its season last month after a series of incidents involving parents in the stands.

"I think we have lost our way a little," Rome Parks and Recreation Department Deputy Director Ryan Hickey told league stakeholders in a message, according to the city's local newspaper, The Rome Sentinel .

While the fan incidents in the pros tend to draw more national media scrutiny, Niehoff said outbursts at the amateur level are having severe consequences. She said the high school sports landscape has lost an estimated 50,000 officials and referees over the past three years – and that, when surveyed, their most common reason for leaving is parent and fan behavior.

"People are angry. And they’re bringing that anger, for any number of reasons, into the high school gym," she said. "We cannot have it."

Wann wonders if maybe the rash of fan incidents since COVID-19 could stem, in some way, from the culture of abuse and aggression that exists online. He noted that many fans likely got accustomed to watching games at home, where they could lash out without repercussion or make hateful comments behind the anonymity of their keyboards.

"Most of the time, people are less likely to do those things in person than they are in private, because in private, they can get away with it," he said. "Maybe some of these fans kind of forgot that they’re not in private anymore."

Contact Tom Schad at [email protected] or on Twitter @Tom_Schad.

Why taking a trauma- and violence-informed approach can make sport safer and more equitable

Associate Professor, School of Kinesiology and Health Science, York University, Canada

Associate Professor, Health Sciences, Carleton University

Disclosure statement

Lyndsay M.C. Hayhurst receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada; the Canadian Foundation for Innovation and the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Francine Darroch receives funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

York University and Carleton University provide funding as members of The Conversation CA.

York University and Carleton University provide funding as members of The Conversation CA-FR.

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Spanish football player Jenni Hermoso accused Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales of sexual assault in September after he kissed her on the lips without her consent during the FIFA Women’s World Cup award ceremony.

Rubiales has since resigned from his job. And the incident has yet again highlighted the pressing need for action to support survivors and prevent sexual and gender-based violence in sports. It also underlined the sheer outrage of the public and fuelled demands for education, interventions and the dire need to overhaul and reform the sport sector here in Canada.

The World Health Organization has declared sexual and gender-based violence one of the most ubiquitous and complex global health issues. Canada has been going through its own safe sport crisis . The recent Hockey Canada crisis boldly and publicly illustrated the need for better educational activities in youth sport.

In 2022, Hockey Canada’s CEO and entire board of directors resigned due to their controversial handling of alleged sexual assaults . Allegations of abuse in varsity sports across Canada have been on the rise, with the most recent allegations put forth in September by the women’s hockey team at Western University.

Read more: Hockey Canada in overtime: The troubled organization's next moves will determine its future

These issues have prompted public discussion around sexual violence, abuse and safeguarding sport. There is a need to develop both innovative interventions and unorthodox approaches at all levels — from the grassroots to the elite level — to truly make sport more equitable, inclusive and safe.

Trauma- and violence-informed approaches

Mainstream sport and physical activity programs rarely tackle social and structural inequities. In response, a trauma- and violence-informed approach calls for participants, coaches, managers and organizations to better understand the effects of systemic, structural and interpersonal violence. This approach is guided by four tenets of trauma- and violence-informed care :

1) trauma awareness;

2) safety and trustworthiness;

3) choice and collaboration;

4) strengths-based and capacity building.

In Canada, calls for a preventive approach to sexual and gender-based violence are loud and clear. There have been demands by scholars , sport managers, policymakers, athletes and coaches for sporting bodies and governments to better understand the widespread abuse in Canadian sports . And yet, these issues remain understudied.

Accounting for violence in sport

Through our community-based research , we are working with diverse community organizations in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver on a multi-level, pilot project that brings an understanding of trauma and violence into their sport and physical activity programs and organizations more broadly.

Through this work, we aim to address and foreground the intersecting effects of systemic, structural and interpersonal violence in the development and delivery of sport and physical activity. To do this, we are using feminist participatory action research to better address the diverse voices, needs and concerns of community members.

This research involves piloting trauma- and violence-informed training modules for coaches/providers, alongside sport and physical activity programs that cater to their specific needs and priorities.

We have also explored what we can learn from sport for development programs across the globe. Sport for development positions sport as a valuable tool to achieve local, domestic and global development objectives, including those encompassed by the UN Sustainable Development Goals .

For example, Women Win — an international organization that aims to advance girls’ and women’s rights through sport and play — supports sport, gender and development initiatives to safeguard and support survivors while promoting health equity and safe sport. Their programming has been useful for promoting sexual and reproductive health rights and addressing sexual and gender-based violence.

Women Win has developed toolkits to help youth address sexual and gender-based violence by transforming their attitudes and behaviours.

Other topics encompassed by the toolkits include using sport and play to build self-confidence, assertive communication, positive body image and self-advocacy. While a notable first step, it is important to ensure these tools don’t place the burden of preventing sexual and gender-based violence on the shoulders of survivors.

Alternative solutions

While scholarship is growing in this area , further research is needed to better understand how trauma- and violence-informed approaches to sport in Canada — alongside sport for development — may address systemic and institutional violence. Indeed, these approaches can potentially help self-identified women who have — and continue to — experience inequities and barriers to participation in sport and physical activity .

Managers, coaches and policymakers must gain a deeper understanding of interpersonal, systemic and sexual and gender-based violence, while also providing support to survivors. While Canadian sport for development organizations like Shape Your Life and global entities like Women Win offer promising strategies, additional resources are required to address these issues adequately.

Scholars and stakeholders have an opportunity to generate new ways of thinking about safe sport practices and policies promoted, for example, through sport for development programming that is survivor-led, trauma-informed and grounded in transformative justice. And while sport for development programs aren’t perfect, the sport sector would do well to build on the crucial groundwork organizations like Women Win and Shape Your Life have already laid out.

Trauma- and violence-informed approaches can potentially enhance safety across Canada’s abusive, patriarchal sporting culture. Now, more than ever, we need collaborative, evidence-based and novel solutions to address violence in sport and support survivors of sexual and gender-based violence. Because we can — and must — do better.

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Violence and Abuse in Competitive Sports

Affiliations.

• 1 Practice for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Winterthur, Switzerland.
• 2 Shared first authorship.
• 3 Adult Psychiatry, Psychiatric Services Grisons, Chur, Switzerland.
• 4 Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
• 5 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, USA.
• 6 Addiction Centre, Zurich, Switzerland.
• 7 Practice for Psychotherapy, Meiringen, Switzerland.
• 8 Psychology Section, Psychology and Educational Sciences Faculty, University of Geneva, Suisse.
• 9 Practice for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Romanshorn, Switzerland.
• 10 Private Clinic Wyss AG, Münchenbuchsee, Switzerland.
• 11 Geriatric and Neuropsychiatry, Psychiatric Service St. Gallen North, Wil, Switzerland.
• PMID: 35291864
• DOI: 10.1024/1661-8157/a003852

Violence and abuse in competitive sports, such as physical and emotional abuse, physical and emotional neglect and sexual abuse, affect children, adolescents and adults alike and lead to severe physical, psychological and social consequences. In current medical and educational care concepts of athletes, there is a lack of consistent integration of sports/psychiatric, clinical psychological and psychotherapeutic, developmental pediatric and developmental psychological expertise. Problem areas arise from fine lines between harassment, non-physical and physical violence. The present position paper includes recommendations for the development of a concept for the protection of mental health in competitive sports and for coping with mental stress and psychological disorders by qualified medical experts in mental health, i.e., child, adolescent and adult psychiatrists with specific expertise in competitive sports: sports psychiatrists. According to the recommendations, experts should also have and further develop competence in other fields, especially in ethics, child protection, protection against violence and abuse in competitive sports, awareness of and dealing with transgression of boundaries, knowledge about child development, and transparency in training structures and relationships.

Keywords: Gewalt und Missbrauch; Leistungssport; Psychiatrie et psychothérapie du sport; Sportpsychiatrie und -psychotherapie; Sports psychiatry; Traumafolgestörungen; competitive sports; mental health; post-traumatic disorders; psychische Gesundheit; santé mentale; sport de compétition; troubles post-traumatiques; violence and abuse; violence et abus.

• Athletes / psychology
• Child Abuse* / diagnosis
• Child Abuse* / prevention & control
• Child Abuse* / psychology
• Mental Health

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The Psychology Of Violence In Sports — On The Field And In The Stands

• Leonard L. Glass

I thought my mother was a quintessentially maternal woman. But at one of my college’s football games, just before the last crucial goal line play, she yelled out her wish for the rival fullback: “Kill him! Kill him!” she shouted.

My father, always much more contained, leaned toward her and said quietly, “Pauline, that’s somebody’s son.”

Many years later, as a psychoanalyst and sports fan, I continue to wonder about this dichotomy among fans: we view our team's athletic rivals as the enemy, but they are also us. Consider our reaction to the friendly chat between the first baseman and the new base runner whose single just knocked in a crucial run; the hug between two spent heavyweights who’ve been pounding one another for 15 rounds; the lingering chat at midfield between two opposing football players after the last play. Did they go to high school together? Were they teammates on a youth team? Are they perchance cousins?

Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, and sadistic pleasure in violence. In other words, it is war without shooting. George Orwell

When my kids were young, I coached their youth soccer teams. After every game the teams would line up to shake hands. Depending on the players’ age and maturity, this gesture was empty at worst and enforced proto-sportsmanship at best. I’d have to check to make sure the younger boys weren’t spitting on their hands to spite their opponents.

The handshakes are a ritual acknowledgement that, fundamentally, opponents are necessary for the game to take place and to make the play transcendent.

George Orwell notably observed , “Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, and sadistic pleasure in violence. In other words, it is war without shooting.”

If that sounds hyperbolic, we must acknowledge how easy it is for us to excuse the professional foul by our team. A bean ball by an opposing pitcher we call a headhunter. But when our guy throws it it's just a “brush-back,” a time-honored warning. We see our linebacker as a hard player; but last year, when he played for our rival, he was a thug. Did he have a criminal record then? Maybe, but now we imagine him redeemed.

Studies have shown that violence in the game, particularly if perceived as unfair, increases the likelihood of violent acts by spectators. Fan violence is further magnified by strong identification with the team, underlying racial and ethnic tensions, social alienation, alcohol consumption, and predominance of young men in the crowd. The 2011 savage beating of Bryan Stow, a Giants fan, by two Dodger fans is a recent and egregious example .

Most of us seek the spectacle of the game to escape the struggles and banality of everyday life: we want to see exceptional displays of skill, strategy, teamwork, character, and yes, aggression, but within the rules of the game, what researcher Jennings Bryant termed “ sanctioned violence .” And that’s the purpose of penalties: to keep aggression in check.

Spectators recognize a spectrum for permissible vs. unacceptable aggression in sport, and we’re gripped by the tension between them. To disavow our interest in the varied displays of aggression would be hypocritical, denying a core aspect of our complex humanity. Experimental evidence in mice supports Freud’s hypothesis that aggression is rewarding in itself, akin to sex; and it’s mediated by the same brain neurochemistry.

As the president of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Dana White, tells CNN: “Everyone loves a fight. It's in our DNA ... if you're in an intersection and there's a basketball game on one corner, a soccer game on another, a baseball game on the third, and a fight on the fourth, everyone will go watch the fight.”

But we want to see that aggression channeled, contained, ‘sublimated’ as we analysts say, on artful but safe display. Jennings Bryant concludes that the fans’ moral judgment of the lawfulness of their team’s violent actions mitigates the satisfaction felt even at the defeat of a hated rival team.

When players genuinely recognize and acknowledge one another, it marks the game for us as a humane competition.

Since we seek organized displays of aggression, we cannot deny our complicity when players are routinely hurt in the service of our entertainment. Can we convince ourselves that the brain injury that so often and predictably comes from playing in the NFL is a side matter, separate from our enjoyment of big hits? Do we pretend that the New Orleans Saints’ bounty system for disabling opponents was an aberration? Don’t we feel queasy at the promotion of games as wars between enemies? Are we devoid of responsibility for uncritically supporting the NFL, which dangles enormous sums in front of players some of whom have little more to market than their capacity to inflict or bear life-altering injury?

We need to balance our appetite to watch aggressive sports action with the other side of our natures, the part that wants to affirm our identification with the humanity and vulnerability of the players on both sides. When players genuinely recognize and acknowledge one another, it marks the game for us as a humane competition. That exchange at first base tempers our sense of blood rivalry and reminds us that it is actually a game. We can indulge in the fantasy of do-or-die because we’re reassured that those are not really the stakes.

• Are Fans To Blame For Violence In NFL?
• 2 Men Sentenced In Brutal Attack On Giants Fan
• Bill Littlefield :  Can We Really Expect Football Culture To Change If We Don’t Want It To?

Leonard L. Glass Cognoscenti contributor Leonard L. Glass, M.D. is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. He is also an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and a senior attending psychiatrist at McLean Hospital.

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August 11, 2022

More than 80% say they've experienced violence in junior sports, especially women and gender-diverse people

by Mary Woessner and Aurélie Pankowiak, The Conversation

Every week millions of Australian children play community sport. Participating in community sports can improve children's mental, physical and social well-being, but only if the sports environment is physically and emotionally safe .

Our new research shows community sports spaces aren't safe for everyone. We found 82% of 886 survey respondents said they experienced violence while playing community sports as a child in Australia.

Our study was one of the first in Australia to include the experiences of non-gender-binary individuals. We found gender-diverse people reported particularly high rates of violence while playing sports as children . Some 81% reported experiencing psychological violence from a coach, compared to 55% and 50% for women and men respectively.

Women also had high rates compared to men of psychological (82% vs 74%) and sexual (40% vs 33%) violence.

So how can we change this?

Violence in community sports

In recent years, cases of violence against children in elite sports in Australia have garnered national media attention. Swimming and gymnastics are perhaps the most visible examples of the widespread nature of violence against children in sports, but they aren't alone.

The media often focus on single sports and the abuse experienced by elite athletes , which can lead to a false sense of security in other sports and in sports at the community level.

The short- and long-term consequences of violence are profound and include anxiety, depression, mistrust, impaired relationship dynamics and more.

Understanding how often children experience violence playing sports is critical to monitoring this violence and keeping children safe.

What we studied

Our team at Victoria University completed the largest study to date in Australia exploring how often children experience violence in community sports.

We surveyed 886 Australian adults who had played organized community sports when they were younger than 18, asking them about their experiences of violence in sports. Specifically, they were asked about unsanctioned violence, that is, violence occurring outside the specified rules of the game. This could have occurred in diverse environments such as on the field, in the locker rooms, or during travel for sports.

It's important to note that because the study didn't use a nationally representative sample, the data can't be extrapolated out to represent the whole of community sports in Australia.

Respondents were mostly women (63%), but came from all states and territories in Australia and had participated in 68 different sports. Around 18% of respondents were between 18 and 25 years old, which highlights how recent some of the reported experiences are.

Psychological, physical, sexual

We found 82% of respondents experienced violence while participating in sports as children in Australia.

Psychological violence was the most frequent form (76% of respondents), but rates of physical violence (66%) and sexual violence (38%) were also high.

The survey also distinguished between different types of perpetrators—peers, coaches and parents. Our respondents reported high rates of psychological violence by peers (68%), and high rates (>50%) of physical and psychological violence perpetrated by a coach.

We found non-gender-binary people experienced higher rates of several types of violence than both women and men combined. Peer-perpetrated sexual harassment was particularly high for these individuals (59%), as was peer physical violence (53%).

Women experienced more psychological and sexual violence, whereas men experienced more physical violence by their peers when playing sports as a child.

While our sample wasn't representative of the Australian population, our findings echo international research findings. A Canadian study from 2020 , which used the same survey in 14–17 year olds, also found high rates of psychological (79%), physical (40%) and sexual violence (28%).

How we can change things

These data can be quite confronting, especially for those of us (ourselves included) who are so passionate about sports.

The aim of this article and study isn't to demonize sports. Instead, it's to acknowledge we need to understand the depth and breadth of violence against children in sports, in order to make sports safer.

In the long-term, a national study with a representative sample is needed to establish how often violence against children in community sports occurs. It's the only way to measure whether our policies and practices are preventing violence against children in sports. Such studies take time, expertise and funding, but they are achievable with the right support.

National frameworks and policies are essential to ensuring sporting clubs are complying with safeguarding standards.

However, national policies and campaigns take time to have impact at the grassroots level. This is complicated by a context where many community sports clubs are surviving on the capacity of very few, burnt-out volunteers .

A top-down approach to behavior change isn't our only option. There's an opportunity to start creating change with and within community sports. This can help identify the most effective strategies for preventing violence against children in community sports.

Community sports can and should be a welcoming, inclusive and safe environment. We can only achieve this through a whole-of-community effort.

Awareness that violence in community sports exists is a first step.

Provided by The Conversation

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Sport and Competition

The strange role of violence in american sports, when is a fight not a fight.

Posted November 3, 2020

On a recent Sunday afternoon, during an NFL game between Chicago and New Orleans, the Bears' wide receiver Javon Wims sucker-punched the Saints' safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and was immediately ejected from the game. Earlier in the year, during the shortened NHL season, several brawls erupted on the ice, reflecting the accuracy of a fan who said "...I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out."

It seems that violence in sports—fights in particular—are viewed differently depending on the athletic contest in question. Whereas football has been moving toward making the sport less violent (reduced kickoff returns, rules against targeting, helmet to helmet contact, etc), other sports like boxing and MMA continue to exist for the sole purpose of beating one's opponent into unconsciousness.

It is sad but true that the typical American sports fan seems to enjoy the violent aspect of sports, even when the purpose of the contest is not meant to encourage it. NASCAR enthusiasts will dwell on spectacular crashes, football color commentators will show highlight reels of body-crushing tackles, and baseball fans anticipate the moment when a pitcher will throw a 100 mph head-high, inside fastball to "retaliate" for some indiscretion by an opposing player. And, of course, there is the WWE—not actually a sport but an expertly enacted display of mayhem that equals or surpasses a really serious bar fight.

In a sense, American sports reflect the pent-up hostilities that seem to be building up in its citizens of late. The divisiveness of our politics , the aggressiveness on our roadways, the frustrations boiling over from COVID weariness — we see it in our interactions and identify with it on the playing fields.

Is there a solution to this vicarious enjoyment of violence in sports? Is there a way to ramp down our hunger for this type of need. Well, getting the COVID epidemic under control would be a step in the right direction. But, as far as sports are concerned, the best way to reduce our dependence on violence is to watch more soccer, where simply head-bumping a guy in the chest can get you thrown out of a championship game! I mean, watching 90 minutes of soccer should pretty well get even the most violent-prone fan to "chill out" and enjoy the match.

Marvin Karlins, Ph.D. , is a psychologist, author, international consultant/speaker, professor (University of South Florida) and journalist.

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Major sports events and domestic violence: A systematic review

Kirsty forsdike.

1 Centre for Sport and Social Impact, La Trobe Business School, La Trobe University, Melbourne Victoria, Australia

Grant O'Sullivan

Leesa hooker.

2 La Trobe Rural Health School, La Trobe University, Melbourne Victoria, Australia

3 Judith Lumley Centre, School of Nursing and Midwifery, La Trobe University, Melbourne Victoria, Australia

Associated Data

Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analyzed in this study.

Increased rates of domestic violence (DV) have been associated with events such as public holidays, seasonal variations, disasters and economic crises. Sport is seen as gendered, exemplifying hegemonic masculinity and associated violence, with the link between sporting culture and violence against women well recognised. This paper reports on a systematic review of empirical research literature exploring the link between major sporting events and incidence of DV. We searched MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus and Proquest Central databases from inception to December 2020 for quantitative studies examining major sports events and reports of DV using a pre–post comparison design. Study quality was assessed using the Kmet quality assessment tool. The review identified 1445 records following duplicate removal. Once screened and assessed for eligibility, 12 studies met the inclusion criteria. Results are presented qualitatively due to the heterogeneity across studies. Most studies originated in North America and the United Kingdom, used police records as their data source for measuring incidences of DV and few looked beyond the day of the sports event for recorded incidences of DV. Studies reviewed suggested that there is an association between certain major sports events and increased reporting of DV. However, studies' findings conflicted with regards to whether increases were associated with contact sports, the rivalry between competing teams, whether the events were emotionally salient and whether alcohol was a contributing factor. In conclusion, there is limited research globally. Heterogeneity and conflicting findings mean that more research is needed to understand the associations and inform community prevention/interventions to address DV.

What is known about this topic

• Domestic violence has significant effects on victims–survivors health.
• Risk factors for domestic violence perpetration include harmful male behaviours such as poor attitudes towards women and use of alcohol.
• Such behaviours are exacerbated in male‐dominated, aggression‐condoning social settings, for example sport.

What this paper adds

• Studies reviewed to show a correlation between sports events and incidences of domestic violence.
• Why a correlation exists and in what contexts is contested; it may relate to the culture of a particular sport in a particular country, compounded by team rivalries, alcohol and emotional salience of matches.
• Scarcity of studies, geographical bias and heterogeneity across methods means more research is required to underpin intervention development to prevent domestic violence.

1. INTRODUCTION

Domestic violence (DV), or more specifically, intimate partner violence, is a global epidemic with almost one‐third of women (27%) aged over 15 years reporting that they have been subjected to violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime (Sardinha et al.,  2022 ). Thirteen percent have experienced such violence in the last 12 months (Sardinha et al.,  2022 ). For western Europe, North America and Australasia, the lifetime prevalence rates range from 21% to 25% (World Health Organization,  2021a ).

Domestic violence ‘refers to behaviour by an intimate partner or ex‐partner that causes physical, sexual or psychological harm, including physical aggression, sexual coercion, psychological abuse and controlling behaviours’ (World Health Organization,  2021b ). Globally, men are the most frequent perpetrators of this violence (World Health Organization,  2021a ).

Domestic violence against women and children has significant effects on victims–survivors physical and mental health and well‐being, which may be long lasting (Lum On et al.,  2016 ). Health consequences for women include depression, anxiety and post‐traumatic stress, poor sexual and reproductive health outcomes (such as abortion, pre‐term birth, sexually transmitted infections) and chronic pain (Trevillion et al.,  2012 ). Children experience detrimental changes in behaviour (aggression and/or mood disorders) and disrupted development (Anderson & van Ee,  2018 ; Vu et al.,  2016 ). Along with health costs, there are serious social and economic consequences.

1.1. Drivers of DV

While gender inequality is the core driver of DV, other reinforcing factors such as socio‐economic inequality and the condoning of violence may contribute to the increased frequency/severity of abuse and harm caused (Our Watch et al.,  2015 ). The increased rate of DV has been investigated across several contexts such as public holidays, seasonal variations, disasters and economic crises (Parkinson,  2019 ). A study in Australia examined several contexts and associated DV reports under the hypothesis that such contexts may provide opportunities for violent behaviour (Braaf & Gilbert,  2007 ). They found some indication of seasonal variation in DV reports, with summer associated with an increase in reporting, as well as some increase around certain public holidays. However, neither season nor public holiday impact was consistent across the various Australia States and Territories.

Additional risk factors for DV perpetration may be harmful masculinities or male behaviours that involve poor attitudes towards women, male peer relationships and the harmful use of alcohol (Our Watch,  2019 ; Wilson et al.,  2014 ). These behaviours may be exacerbated in a certain male‐dominated, aggression‐condoning social and leisure settings, like sports. Sport has long been seen as a cultural setting that contributes to violence against women (Gagnon,  1996 ), with the occurrence of major sports events being linked to an increase in reported DV incidences (Card & Dahl,  2011 ; Trendl et al.,  2021 ).

1.2. Violence and sport

The link between sporting culture and violence against women has been recognised for several decades (Sabo et al.,  2000 ; Sabo & Runfola,  1980 ). Violence and sport are intricately connected. Violence is sanctioned in sport, particularly in relation to team contact sports (Kerr,  2005 ). Studies argue an inherent association between sport and violence, and an acceptance that sports promote hostility towards and dominant behaviour, through physical strength, over the opposition (Kerr,  2005 ; Messner,  1992 ). Sport has long been seen as gendered, exemplifying hegemonic masculinity and associated violence (Clark,  2017 ; Messner,  1992 ). Coaches see violence as an important aspect of the sport, even if non‐contact, promoting aggression for performance (Clark,  2017 ). Aggressive language such as sledging or ‘bagging out’, a term for deriding the opposition used in Australia, can blur the boundaries in the sport of what is and is not acceptable thereby normalising derogatory behaviour outside of sport (Corboz et al.,  2016 ).

The normalising of such violent and aggressive behaviour in sports has long been linked to rates of violence by male athletes, particularly sexual assault, across collegiate and professional sports (Koss & Gaines,  1993 ; Sønderlund et al.,  2014 ). Sonderland et al. argue that ‘potentially negative athlete social identity as derived from sports team membership’ (p. 6) supports other research that has shown sports endorse hegemonic masculinity, sexist attitudes and violence both on and off the field. Young male athletes are socialised early into sexual violence, with Cheever and Eisenberg ( 2020 ) finding that youth involved in sports are more likely than their non‐sport peers to coerce a partner into sex. Sexual violence and DV perpetrated by high‐profile male professional athletes have increasingly been seen in the media, with varied responses by sports organisations and fans regarding the veracity of the allegations, for example across the American National Football League (NFL; Doerer,  2018 ), Australian Rugby League (BBC,  2021 ) and the English Premier League (O'Riordan,  2021 ).

1.3. Sports events and fan violence

Research has focused on the connection between sport and men's violence more broadly due to the moods associated with and displayed while watching sports (Gagnon,  1996 ). The notion that sports consumers display ‘irrational passions’ has been acknowledged as a unique part of sporting culture and the business of sport (Smith & Stewart,  2010 , p. 4). Smith and Stewart ( 2010 ) argued that sports fans experience ‘intensely emotional … attachments’ to teams, their ‘blind optimism’ persists and memories are ‘highly charged’, with some fans being ‘passionate to the point of addiction’ (p. 4).

It is perhaps such an emotive connection to sport, rather than excessive alcohol consumption, that most closely connects major sporting events with aggressive and/or criminal behaviour (Ostrowsky,  2014 ). Both Sivarajasingam et al. ( 2005 ) and Quigg et al. ( 2013 ) found a connection between international soccer match days and an increase in assault‐related presentations at emergency departments, whereas Miller et al. ( 2013 ) in Australia found a similar increase following a local football team match (which was not associated with alcohol). There has been a significant amount of research making the positive connection between major sporting events and violent and/or criminal behaviour by fans following matches (Block,  2021 ; Kalist & Lee,  2016 ). Given these research findings over the last 20 years, it is unsurprising that connections have also been made between aggression when watching sports and violence against women (Gagnon,  1996 ).

Research has so far shown that connections between major sports and assaults or crime more broadly are not necessarily the same across all sports or locations: following the broadcast of tennis in Switzerland admission rates to hospitals decreased (Correia et al.,  2018 ), and no increase in (sex) crimes was seen following the Formula 1 Grand Prix in the United States (Piquero et al.,  2021 ). Furthermore, rates of increase in hospital admissions or crime have been shown to potentially differ between countries and between the level of significance of the match or surprising result (Hughes et al.,  2018 ; Kalist & Lee,  2016 ).

While some research has been completed on the relationship between DV and sport, there is limited scholarship to support community prevention strategies and the development of interventions to address this violence. The aim of this review is to explore what link there may be between major sporting events and the occurrence of DV in order to support future prevention and response strategies. The question the review seeks to answer is ‘What evidence is there of an association between major sporting events and changes in reported incidence of DV?’

We followed a systematic review methodology in order to systematically search for, appraise and synthesise research studies examining the association between major sports events and incidences of DV (Grant & Booth,  2009 ). This would then also establish what is known, what is unknown and what recommendations there are for practice and future research (Grant & Booth,  2009 ). We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to develop the study protocol and followed these guidelines in the reporting of our methods (Page et al.,  2021 ). The review protocol was sent to PROSPERO for registration in December 2020.

2.1. Search strategy

Various disciplines of scholarship may be interested in the issue of DV and major sports events. As such, we searched across targeted databases best suited to representing relevant disciplines. Database decisions were also informed by our experience conducting scoping reviews on related topics in the field of violence against women. We searched in MEDLINE and CINAHL for medical and allied health disciplines, PsycINFO for psychology and social science, SPORTDiscus for sport scholarship, and the broad Proquest Central database for extensive coverage of education and social science. The search was conducted using Boolean operators tailored to each database. The search included keywords, truncations and MESH/subject headings. The subject heading of ‘sports’ included all studies allocated with the sports heading and was ‘exploded’ to include any specific sport types (e.g. football) listed within sports. All database searches, except for SPORTDiscus which does not use subject headings, included the exploded subject heading sports. All database searches, except SPORTDiscus, also included the subject heading ‘domestic violence’. Synonyms for domestic violence were also included based on the thesaurus tree of each database. The search was conducted from inception to December 2020. Search results were filtered by the English language. We also searched reference lists of papers in the full‐text review stage. The search strategy for MEDLINE has been included in Table  1 as an example.

Medline search strategy

Numerical final search results were recorded and presented, using a PRISMA flow diagram (Page et al.,  2021 ). EndNote X9 bibliographic management software was used to collate search results and to identify and exclude duplicates. The remaining search results were exported to the systematic review production tool Covidence for title/abstract and full‐text paper selection (Veritas Health Innovation,  2021 ). Covidence also checked for any duplicates missed in both the Endnote identified and manually identified processes. Two authors independently screened results, informed by the eligibility criteria, at the title and abstract levels. Any conflicts in screening results between authors were resolved by a third author. The same process was followed for full‐text screening. Exclusion reasons, based on eligibility criteria, were noted during full‐text screening, collated and recorded in the PRISMA diagram (Figure  1 ).

PRISMA diagram of study selection. PRISMA, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses

2.2. Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Our review looked for peer‐reviewed studies that examine the incidence of DV in relation to the timing of major sports events. As such studies needed an official measure of DV incidence, such as administrative data from police, hospital and/or specialist DV support service sources. We looked for studies with incidence data that reported on DV between partners or spouses. In relation to DV, the incidence is defined as the number of incidents of family, domestic and sexual violence in the relevant population within a specified reference period (Australian Bureau of Statistics,  2013a ). We acknowledge, however, that there are inherent limitations to estimating community incidence of DV from administrative data. This includes victims/perpetrators engaging with support services, health services and/or the justice system in varied ways and at varied times or not at all (Australian Bureau of Statistics,  2013a , 2013b ). Administrative data miss the proportion of DV incidents that are not reported to police or result in health or support service engagement. Additionally, accurate records will rely on police personnel, health/medical staff and support workers accurately identifying an incident of DV and defining such incidents in a standardised way, something that is currently inconsistent (Australian Bureau of Statistics,  2013a , 2013b ). Therefore, we are interested in the change in single incidents of reported DV in the time directly after a major sports event/s, rather than overall estimates of community DV incidence.

To be included studies needed a major sporting event as an exposure variable. We characterised major sports events as professional team sports games and championships (e.g. football), major races such as horse racing (e.g. the Melbourne Cup) or motor racing (e.g. Formula 1 racing), or other major sports events such as boxing title fights. This includes events that are viewed by spectators in‐person at the event or televised at a venue (e.g. a bar) or at home.

Finally, included studies needed to match a particular study design. Due to the focus on DV incidence as the outcome variable of interest, only studies using quantitative measures of DV in relation to major sports events were considered. Thus, we searched for studies that examined quantified administrative DV data pre‐ and post‐major sports events or ongoing patterns in quantified administrative data across periods where major sports events occur. Included studies, therefore, needed to have longitudinal or pre‐post comparison designs.

2.3. Quality assessment

The quality of included studies was assessed using the Kmet quality assessment tool (Kmet et al.,  2004 ). This tool is pitched as being relevant to studies from a variety of fields and is one of the few tools that does not assume assessed studies will collect primary data from study participants. This is important as all studies in our review utilised secondary analysis of administrative data. The Kmet tool includes a set of assessment items for quantitative studies and a set for qualitative studies. But due to the quantitative nature of our research question, we only used the set of assessment items for quantitative studies. The tool has items that assess a studies' research question, design, sample/input data, sampling (if relevant), intervention design (if relevant), outcome/exposure measures, analysis and conclusions. Scores for relevant items are tallied and calculated as a proportion (expressed as a fraction of 1.0) of the total possible score. Although Kmet et al. ( 2004 ) did not include a score rating key, others have done so. Henry et al. ( 2016 ), using an amended version of the Kmet tool, designed a rating key. This key, which differentiates between strong (>0.8), moderate (0.6–0.8) and weak (<0.6) studies, was used in the current systematic review. For our process, two authors conducted independent study quality assessments. A third author conducted an independent assessment on any studies where the original two authors disagreed enough to rate the study in different strength ratings, the final rating being the one–two of the three authors agreed upon. If all three authors disagreed on the rating, a group discussion helped negotiate a final rating for the study in question.

2.4. Results extraction

From included studies, we extracted study identifiers, country of origin, publication type, study design, sample and sampling information, the major sporting event exposure variable, the in‐person or televised nature of the major sports event, the violence measure, mediating/moderating/explanatory variables, the analysis method, the accounting of any confounders and a description of the relevant study findings. If available, extracted study findings included the change or difference statistic and effect size, or association statistic where relevant, and statistical significance. Data were extracted by one author and checked by a second author. Conflicts were resolved by a third author.

2.5. Descriptive report on results

On data extraction, it was clear that there was significant heterogeneity (in design and outcomes) across the studies included in the review. We determined that a meta‐analysis was not possible given the nature of the research question we were addressing. Instead, we chose to report on the results descriptively. We tabulated and summarised all findings with the measurement effects where available (such as percentages, p values or 95% confidence interval [CI]). Our analysis therefore highlights the factors relating to a major sporting event that has been associated with an increase in DV incidence and provides an overview of the evidence in this area.

A total of 1445 records were found following our initial search and duplicate removal (Figure  1 ). Once screened and assessed for eligibility, 12 studies met the inclusion criteria for this review. These studies were mostly located in the United States of America (USA) focusing on the NFL (no. = 5), or the United Kingdom (UK) and focusing on soccer (England, no. = 3; Scotland, no. = 2). The remainder were Canadian studies (no. = 2) looking at Ice Hockey or a mix of sports that included Ice Hockey, American Football and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). There is therefore a focus on team sports.

Dates of the publications ranging from 1992 to 2021, however, 75% (no. = 9) of the papers were dated 2010 and, later, reflecting a growing interest in this potential association. The quality of the included studies varied widely, with 42% (no. = 5) assessed as strong, 42% (no. = 5) assessed as moderate and 17% (no. = 2) assessed as weak.

We present a descriptive account of findings, looking first at the studies' methods and then at the results of the studies included in the review. Characteristics, outcomes and quality of the included studies can be seen in Table  2 .

Characteristics, outcomes and quality of included studies

Note : Quality assessment: studies were classified out of 1.0, with strong articles categorised as >0.8, moderate (0.61–0.8) or weak (<0.6) based on Henry et al. ( 2016 ) amended version of Kmet et al.'s quality rating system. These categories were used as they most accurately reflected the authors' opinion on the quality of the studies.

Abbreviations: DV, domestic violence; IPV, intimate partner violence; NFL, National Football League; NHL, National Hockey League; RR, relative risk.

3.1. Study methods: context, data source and time

3.1.1. context.

The majority of studies included in the review examined national league matches (no. = 9) with the studies located in England specifically looking at the national team competing in World/European competitions (no. = 3).

Most studies focused on particular team's and/or geographical locations, with police data for that area being used as a measure of DV incidence. For example, where teams were based in a particular city, that city's police data were used. The assumption is being that those watching a televised sports event are more likely to be local to the teams in question. In the North American (the USA and Canada) studies using police data, the focus was often on one city [e.g., Philadelphia (Adubato,  2016 ), Los Angeles (Sachs & Chu,  2000 ) and Calgary (Boutilier et al.,  2017 ) or multiple cities in which national leagues had teams located (Card & Dahl,  2011 ; Gantz et al.,  2006 ; Holman et al.,  2010 )]. In comparison, studies based in England looking at national teams competing in international competitions focused on police data from a region (such as Lancashire or the West Midlands) (Kirby et al.,  2014 ; Trendl et al.,  2021 ) or across several regions (33 out of 39 police force regions in England) (Brimicombe & Cafe,  2012 ).

3.1.2. Data source

Almost all of the studies used police records as their data source for measuring incidences of DV (no. = 11). Only one early study used a hospital's emergency department admissions (White et al.,  1992 ). One of the studies looked at a combination of police data and data from a specialised helpline for those in Calgary who were experiencing DV and/or sexual violence (Boutilier et al.,  2017 ).

Police recording practices differ and as such the data used across the studies included incidences recorded as DV, abuse, or a domestic incident (but not considered a ‘crime’)—this may be either experiencing or witnessing such violence. Some specifically listed categories of DV incidents such as violation of abuse order, simple assault, aggravated assault, rape, felony DV assault, misdemeanour DV and DV non‐criminal.

Some of the police records included detail on whether alcohol was present, whether it was a newly reported perpetrator or whether the perpetrator was a repeat offender (and if repeated, the time between incidences being reported) (Holman et al.,  2010 ; Trendl et al.,  2021 ), whether it was publicly perpetrated, resulted in injury or there was a delay between incidence and reporting. However, Holman et al. ( 2010 ) acknowledged that, for their study, police recording practices with regards to alcohol were inconsistent and as such could not produce any meaningful findings.

The hospital data looked across injuries to both men and women, including gunshot wounds, stabbings, assaults, falls, strikes with an object and lacerations (the last three being potentially used by patients to hide a DV incident) (White et al.,  1992 ). The hospital data seem the least clear in terms of a correlation to a DV incident per se (as the identity of the perpetrator of assault is not recorded).

3.1.3. Time

One study looked at just one competition season's worth of data (Adubato,  2016 ). Three studies looking at international events either examined data across 1 year (Brimicombe & Cafe,  2012 ), 3 years (Kirby et al.,  2014 ) or multiple years (Trendl et al.,  2021 ). Other studies looked at data across multiple seasons/years, from 2 years (White et al.,  1992 ) to 11 years (Card & Dahl,  2011 ).

Most of the data extracted for analysis related to the day on which the sports event occurred, many specifying the hourly range from the time the game started: from within 3 h of the match starting (Trendl et al.,  2021 —study assessed three‐hourly time periods up to 24 h post‐game starting), within 8 h of the game starting (Adubato,  2016 ) and within 12 h (Card & Dahl,  2011 ) to within 24 h of the match starting (Dickson et al.,  2016 ; Williams et al.,  2013 ). Other studies looked at daily and monthly rates of DV, seeing where those rates increased in relation to a major sports event (Boutilier et al.,  2017 ; Brimicombe & Cafe,  2012 ; Kirby et al.,  2014 ; Sachs & Chu,  2000 ). Three studies looked at DV incidents beyond the game day: with the longest being up to 5 days post‐game (Gantz et al.,  2006 ).

3.2. Study results

There were seven key themes collectively across the studies in relation to an association between major sports events and incidences of DV. We present each in turn below.

3.2.1. A major sports event is associated with an increase in DV incidence

Collectively, almost all the studies (no. = 10) in this review found that days on which a major sporting match is played, under specific conditions or just generally, correlate with a significant increase in DV reports/records of incidences (including all studies assessed as strong in quality: Card & Dahl,  2011 ; Dickson et al.,  2016 ; Kirby et al.,  2014 ; Trendl et al.,  2021 ; White et al.,  1992 ). Two exceptions stand out. While finding an increase in DV dispatches from Wednesday to Sunday during NFL weeks in comparison to non‐NFL weeks, this finding was not statistically significant (Sachs & Chu,  2000 ). While the study reported by Holman et al. ( 2010 ) was assessed as weak in quality, they found a significant correlation for only two out of 12 cities analysed, with one of those being an inverse relationship. However, given the acknowledgement by the authors that there was often insufficient data to analyse, little strength can be placed on this finding.

There were two studies providing conditional results. Williams et al. ( 2013 ) found that there was a significant increase in DV on rival game days between league teams Celtic and Rangers, but not on days when the Scottish International team played. Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) only found a significant increase where alcohol was also reported.

3.2.2. Contact sports and associated violence

One of the studies located in the USA supported the argument that contact sports are associated with DV, with NFL and Ice Hockey shown to be associated with an increase in DV incidences (Adubato,  2016 ). White et al. ( 1992 ) also suggested that ‘an inherently violent’ (p. 160) sport, NFL, would be associated with assaults on women. This does not align with the evidence from the UK. Soccer is not considered a violent sport, being non‐contact, and yet studies on soccer in the UK still show an association between a major sports event and increased reported DV incidences (Brimicombe & Cafe,  2012 ; Dickson et al.,  2016 ; Kirby et al., 2014 ; Trendl et al.,  2021 ; Williams et al.,  2013 ). Furthermore, one strong study in the UK compared soccer with rugby union, a fundamentally contact sport (Trendl et al.,  2021 ), with soccer but not rugby showing a connection to increased reported DV incidences. Also, Boutilier et al. ( 2017 ) found that the emotional salience of a game was more important than whether the sport was a contact sport or not (with no statistically significant finding for UFC events and calls to policy/helpline).

3.2.3. Rivals

The factor of key rivalries between competing teams was found by several of the included studies, all assessed as either moderate or strong, to be connected to increased DV (Boutilier et al.,  2017 ; Card & Dahl,  2011 ; Dickson et al.,  2016 ; Williams et al.,  2013 ). Card and Dahl ( 2011 ) found that games against rivals that resulted in an unexpected loss had the greatest statistically significant association with an increase in DV reports (20%), compared to non‐rival unexpected loss (8%), even if the game resulted in an unexpected win. Studies following traditional Scottish rival soccer matches, Celtics versus Rangers, showed increases in DV reporting (Dickson et al.,  2016 reported a 36% increase; Williams et al.,  2013 reported an increase with a significance of p  < 0.001 compared to control and p  < 0.004 compared to international games).

3.2.4. Important and emotionally salient

Several studies, all assessed as moderate or strong, examined the impact of a match being deemed ‘important’ or ‘emotionally salient’ (play‐offs, close to winning the league, losing) and found an association with an increase in DV reports (Boutilier et al.,  2017 ; Card & Dahl,  2011 ; Dickson et al.,  2016 ; Gantz et al.,  2006 ). However, there was inconsistency between these studies. Card and Dahl ( 2011 ) found it was an unexpected loss that was significantly associated with an increase (10%) in DV reports, more so if the game was deemed important (play‐off contention) (13%). Dickson et al. ( 2016 ) found that there was a significant increase in DV reports in relation to important matches played by Celtic and Rangers, particularly if wins were expected and there was a draw (37% and 24% respectively) and, in the case of Rangers, when the game was expected to be tight, and they lost (16%). Also, DV reporting increased where Celtic and Rangers were playing other teams in matches deemed both important and televised. As such, as Dickson et al. ( 2016 ) argue, in important games, it is disappointment in unexpected bad outcomes that is associated with increased reports of DV.

Meanwhile, Gantz et al. ( 2006 ) found the more the team was expected to lose, the higher the number of police DV dispatches on game day ( p  = 0.009) and up to 3 days post‐game. When games matter the most (when a few weeks remain and the team is in contention), there are significantly more police DV dispatches (Gantz et al.,  2006 ). Furthermore, Gantz et al. ( 2006 ) found a significant association in relation to Super Bowl games, a similar finding to Sachs and Chu ( 2000 ), with the latter also found play‐off is weeks being associated with an increase in DV.

While Kirby et al. ( 2014 ) found that the relative risk of DV would significantly increase when England won or drew a game (relative risk [RR] = 1.256, p  < 0.001) during the soccer World Cup, this increase was greater when they lost (RR = 1.382, p  < 0.01) and particularly if it meant exiting the World Cup. Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) contradict this finding. They found that alcohol‐related DV cases significantly increased only when England won, not when they lost or drew. Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) also report a re‐analysis of Kirby et al. ( 2014 ) data, however, separating wins and draws, where Kirby et al. did not. In this re‐analysis, Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) estimated that there was a 45%, 95% CI [28–64], increase on days England won, and a 39%, 95% CI [18–64], increase on days they lost. There was no effect as a result of a draw. This is supported by Brimicombe and Cafe ( 2012 ) who also found no effect following a draw. This raises the importance of categorising results, separating wins, losses and draws when analysing the data. White et al. ( 1992 ) showed a similar finding to Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) in that the only significant increase in admissions for women was on the day after Redskins win (the odds of a woman being admitted for the reason of a gunshot wound, stabbing or assault increased by 5.53 to 1 on the day after a win). White et al. ( 1992 ) also found no correlation between female admissions to hospitals during/after play‐off matches.

3.2.5. Frustrating or controversial games

Card and Dahl ( 2011 ) also found that unexpected losses following a frustrating game (high occurrence of ‘sacks’, penalty yards and turnovers) were more statistically significantly associated with an increase in DV reports (15%) compared to unexpected losses following a non‐frustrating game (7%). However, Dickson et al. ( 2016 ) disagreed. They found that where the games were considered controversial (high number of fouls or bookings by the referee), there was no significant effect on DV reporting.

Ultimately, Card and Dahl ( 2011 ) found that types of games had a compounding impact on DV reports, with games where the team is in play‐off contention and is either (1) playing a traditional rival or (2) the game was frustrating, an unexpected loss results in a 17% increase in reports, compared to a 13% increase for all play‐off contention games. Similarly, Dickson et al. ( 2016 ) found that where games were particularly salient, match outcomes had a significant effect on DV reporting. As Card and Dahl ( 2011 ) argue, unexpected losses compound with situations where the games matter the most to fans.

3.2.6. Timing of the sports event and reporting of DV

As expected, matches played at the weekend are associated with higher rates of DV (Kirby et al.,  2014 ; Sachs & Chu,  2000 ). Kirby et al. found that the relative risk of DV increased on Saturdays by 43.5% ( p  < 0.001) and Sundays by 50.6% ( p  < 0.001).

However, there appears some contention with regards to the time period when the association is most likely to occur. Card and Dahl ( 2011 ) found that the connection between an upset loss and a spike in DV reports was immediately after a game had finished and not during or several hours post‐game completion. Although Gantz et al. ( 2006 ) found that while only game day was associated with DV increased generally, when taking the importance of intensity of the game into account, the police DV dispatches were higher up to 3 days post‐game day. In the case of the Super Bowl, the association with increased DV dispatches was only for game day and the next day (Gantz et al.,  2006 ).

In comparison, Kirby et al. ( 2014 ) found a significant increase in RR of DV on the day after the England game was played (RR = 1.107, p  < 0.05), as did Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) but only with alcohol‐related DV cases. However, Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) argue that, based on their findings, the increases in DV were focused during and shortly after a game. Kirby et al. ( 2014 ) argue that 2 days of increased RR may be due to games being held in the late afternoon or evening, meaning that DV would potentially occur after they had completed during the early hours of the following morning. Similarly, White et al. ( 1992 ) found only the day after a team won was there a significant increase in women being admitted to a hospital for a gunshot wound, stabbing or assault.

3.2.7. Alcohol as a contributing factor

There was not enough data to affirm consensus either way with regards to increased alcohol intake and sports event being connected with an increase in DV. Holman et al. ( 2010 ) argued that alcohol could not be considered to be associated with an increase in DV following a sports event. However, given this study was assessed as weak and the authors also acknowledged that the data were limited due to a lack of consistency in police reporting DV complaints, this finding lacks strength (Holman et al.,  2010 ). Trendl et al. ( 2021 ) only found an association between game day and DV reports when alcohol was also recorded. They also found that alcohol‐related DV was significantly higher with there being 41% more cases of male to female alcohol‐related DV on England's national soccer team win days, and 17% more cases on the days that followed England games, as compared to non‐tournament days. The strength of Trendl et al.'s study gives rise to the importance of analysing associations between sports events, alcohol and DV incidences.

4. DISCUSSION

While an attempt has been made to synthesise these results, we found significant heterogeneity between the included studies. It is currently impossible to compare across studies given differences in data sources, recording practices, sport types and locations, time periods across which data are analysed and variable quality of the studies.

The research on the connection between major sporting events and DV has some way to come, but it is clear that there are some similarities to the work that has been done around associations between major sports events, criminal behaviour and emergency department assault‐related presentations (Block,  2021 ; Kalist & Lee,  2016 ). Despite such heterogeneity across our included studies, the results of this review suggest that it is not just a major sporting event that is associated with an increase in DV, but rather it may be the culture of a particular sport in a particular country, compounded by the potential significant rivalry between teams and how important, or emotionally salient, the game is.

It is clear that very limited research has been done globally, with the focus predominantly on North America and the United Kingdom and only across football (including American football and soccer formats) and ice hockey. There has been some assumption that contact sport promotes aggression and violence, influencing the behaviour of fans beyond the match itself (Adubato,  2016 ; Kerr,  2005 ; White et al.,  1992 ). However, the variety across the studies included in this review suggests that it is not limited to contact‐only sports which support studies regarding tennis and Formula 1 (Correia et al.,  2018 ; Piquero et al.,  2021 ). If that is the case, more research is required to determine other factors connecting a major sports event and increased incidence of DV, such as whether it is the culture of the sport and the socio‐demographics of those watching. Irrational passions as they pertain to significant rivals might better explain the association between emotionally salient games such as those between Celtic versus Rangers in Scotland (Dickson et al.,  2016 ; Williams et al.,  2013 ).

The data used to measure DV incidences are predominantly reports made to/by the police, most of which are focused on city locations. There are significant issues with relying on police data, including inconsistent recording practices within and across police forces, under‐reporting to police and the ability of police officers insufficiently trained to identify DV (Kebbell,  2019 ; Voce & Boxall,  2018 ). Geographical and cultural differences between countries and the structure of police services may also impede the ability to compare studies in the future. In the UK, regional data are used (rather than cities as is often the case in the USA), for example, in both Scottish studies, the Strathclyde region is used (which includes the city of Glasgow, chosen to examine the impact of the two biggest rival soccer teams in Scotland: Celtic and Rangers). The context of major sports events in different countries is key, whether countries can connect such sports events with their police data. In the USA and Canada, the focus is on large cities, whereas in the UK, the population is spread beyond cities so regions are more appropriate and how the police force, and therefore its data, is focused. This would differ depending on the country being analysed and how the delivery of major sports is set up in relation to police data.

Weekends (as typical match days) have higher rates of DV (Kirby et al.,  2014 ; Sachs & Chu,  2000 ) which is similar to studies looking at increases during public holidays/weekends (Braaf & Gilbert,  2007 ). However, studies included in this review rarely looked beyond the match day, which may be explained by the reliance on police data. Given DV is under‐reported to police, other avenues for determining DV incidences are required in future studies such as hospital admissions and calls to helplines that may better identify delays between a game, time of DV incident and actual reporting or seeking of help.

The impact of alcohol is not clear, given only two studies included DV reports linked with alcohol use and only one of these was assessed as strong in terms of quality. Alcohol is a risk factor for DV (Wilson et al.,  2014 ) and has been connected to sports and violence (Sønderlund et al.,  2014 ). But whether it is the driving force for DV post major sports event, one of the several factors (rivalries, emotional salient games and the irrational passion of fans) or not connected at all requires further investigation.

5. LIMITATIONS

Due to the heterogeneity of the studies conducted thus far on the association between major sporting events and DV incidence, we were only able to undertake a descriptive synthesis of the results. Meta‐analysis can only take place once there are sufficient studies and researchers begin to use the same data collection methods and outcome measures.

We may have missed relevant studies examining the connection between sports events and DV incidences due to limited inclusion of those studies reporting in English. As such this review cannot address issues of diversity between countries' cultures. Nor do the studies included in the review enable examination of the diversity of those attending sports events nor those reporting DV to the police or presenting at the hospital.

6. CONCLUSION

While there appears to be a strong correlation between major sporting events and DV, why such a correlation exists and in what contexts is still unknown and more research is needed to understand the relationship and how best to intervene to prevent this violence. Equally, we cannot make assumptions based on the data from North America and the UK to inform other contexts.

The implications for practice, policy and research are broad in scope (Table  3 ). Given the scarcity of studies beyond North America and the UK and the limited type of sports investigated, more studies are required across more sports and more countries. Furthermore, more studies looking at international and national competitions are required, particularly as to whether factors such as rivalry between competing teams, emotional salience and alcohol consumption are fundamental factors in the correlation between the sports event and DV.

Practice, policy and research implications

Data sources beyond police records are required, and consistency in the use of data sources is needed between studies if meta‐analysis is to be feasible. Additional sources of data may include hospital admissions, calls to helplines and population surveys, particularly where delays in reports of DV incidences can be identified. Further, qualitative reports of victims–survivors and perpetrators are needed to better understand the circumstances and experiences of both victims and perpetrators in relation to DV following a major sports event (Brooks‐Hay & Lombard,  2018 ).

Intervention development that can target these events has so far been hampered by a lack of scholarship. Additional research into this area can support possible strategies such as the development of policies and interventions that are tailored to particular countries, and how a country's culture then influences the behaviour in respect of a particular sport. Recommendations for prevention activities include policy development that guides when major sporting events are scheduled (e.g. avoiding public holidays), appropriate timing and development of social marketing campaigns to coincide with particular sporting events (such as important upcoming games between major rivals) and joint resource planning across police, health and specialist services.

While there appears to be an association between major sports events and the increased incidence of DV, there is great scope for further research and associated policy and intervention development as a result.

AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS

All authors made substantial contributions to the conception and design of this study as well as the acquisition, analysis and interpretation of the data. All authors were involved in drafting the manuscript and revising it critically for important intellectual content. All authors gave final approval of the version to be published.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

We have no known conflict of interest to declare.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

None. Open access publishing facilitated by La Trobe University, as part of the Wiley ‐ La Trobe University agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians.

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Gunmen Kill 60 at Concert Hall Outside Moscow, Russian Authorities Say

The Islamic State claimed the attack, the deadliest in the Moscow region in more than a decade.

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By Valerie Hopkins ,  Ivan Nechepurenko ,  Aric Toler and Anton Troianovski

• March 22, 2024

Several camouflage-clad gunmen opened fire at a popular concert venue on the outskirts of Moscow on Friday night, killing about 60 people and wounding more than 100, Russian authorities said, making it the deadliest attack in the capital region in more than a decade.

Hours after the mayhem began, the Russian national guard said its officers were still looking for the attackers. State media agencies reported that there had been up to five perpetrators.

As gunshots boomed through the building containing the concert hall, one of the largest and most popular music venues in the Moscow area, fire erupted in the upper floors of the structure, and the blaze intensified after an explosion, causing the roof to collapse.

The Islamic State, through an affiliated news agency, claimed responsibility. U.S. security officials, including a senior counterterrorism official, said they believed the attack was carried out by the Islamic State in Khorasan , a branch of the terrorist group that is active in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

Multiple videos posted on social media and verified by The New York Times show several people entering Crocus City Hall, a sprawling shopping and entertainment complex in suburban Krasnogorsk, northwest of Moscow, and firing rifles. Other videos show people running past bloodied victims lying on the floor or screaming at the sound of gunshots, while photos show bodies lined up outside the building.

A woman who gave her name only as Marina said in a text message that she was standing in line for a concert outside, in the cold, about 8 p.m. when people without overcoats started running out of the building, saying they had heard shots.

“As soon as I heard automatic rifle shots, I started running, too,” she said.

The state news agency TASS reported that emergency services had dispatched helicopters to try to rescue people from the building’s roof, where flames and smoke could be seen billowing into the night sky.

At least 115 people were hospitalized after the attack, five of them children, according to the Russian minister of health, Mikhail Murashko. The injured include 60 adult patients in serious condition, the minister said. Another 30 people were treated and released.

The Russian leader, Vladimir V. Putin, made no immediate direct public statement, issuing only a statement through a deputy prime minister, Tatyana Golikova, that expressed hopes for the recovery of the injured and gratitude to the doctors treating them.

Russia’s Investigative Committee, the country’s equivalent to the F.B.I., said it had opened a criminal case into a terrorist act and dispatched its investigators to the site. RIA Novosti said that a special police unit was working inside the building.

John F. Kirby, a spokesman for President Biden’s National Security Council, told reporters that the White House had “no indication at this time that Ukraine or Ukrainians were involved.” Mykhailo Podolyak, a top adviser to Ukraine’s presidential office, said in a video statement that “Ukraine has absolutely nothing to do” with the attack.

On March 7, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow issued a security alert that warned that its personnel were “monitoring reports that extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts.” The statement, which did not say anything about the extremists’ affiliation, warned Americans that an attack could take place in the next 48 hours.

Pro-Kremlin voices seized on the U.S. Embassy’s warning to paint America as trying to scare Russians. On March 19, Mr. Putin called the statement “obvious blackmail” made with “the intention to intimidate and destabilize our society.”

The attack on Friday was connected to the March 7 warning, according to American officials briefed on the matter. They added that the United States alerted Russia privately at the time about intelligence it had about Islamic State activity.

Statements of condolence and outrage came from around the world, including the leader of China, Xi Jinping, and governments of the United States and other countries that are at odds with Russia. Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of the opposition leader Aleksei Navalny, who died in a Russian prison last month, said on social media, “All those involved in this crime must be found and brought to justice.”

The attack came on a day when 165 missiles and drones attacked Ukraine, constituting what the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, said was “the largest attack against Ukraine’s energy grid since the start of Russia’s war.”

The attack began around 8 p.m. local time, minutes before a sold-out performance by the veteran rock band Piknik was scheduled to start. The concert hall has 6,200 seats, according to its website.

“At least three people in camouflage burst into the ground floor of Crocus City Hall and opened fire with automatic weapons” and threw incendiary devices, a correspondent for RIA Novosti reported from the scene. “There are definitely wounded.”

In videos filmed inside the concert hall, audience members are heard screaming and seen crouching as repeated gunshots echo outside the hall.

Russia’s emergency service said it had sent 130 vehicles to the scene and three helicopters to drop water on the blaze that gutted the upper floors. The fire was mostly extinguished shortly before 5 a.m. Saturday, according to the regional governor, Andrey Vorobyov.

Shootings are rare in Russia, where the state tightly regulates the possession of firearms. One of the deadliest ones occurred in 2022, when a gunman killed 18 people and wounded 23 others in a school in the town of Izhevsk.

However, attacks have struck across the Russia in recent decades, events that the authorities often described as terrorism. A 2011 suicide bombing at Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport killed 37 people, and two coordinated suicide bombings in Moscow subway stations in 2010 killed about 40 people.

In 2004, 172 people died in a siege at a Moscow theater by Chechen separatists. The police pumped a sedative gas into the theater to incapacitate the attackers, but the gas killed 132 hostages.

The complex where the attack took place on Friday was developed by the Azerbaijan-born billionaire Aras Agalarov, whose son, Emin, is a famous pop star. Former President Donald Trump held the Miss Universe pageant at the same complex in 2013, and world-famous performers like Eric Clapton, Dua Lipa and Sia have also performed there.

Alina Lobzina , Julian E. Barnes , Neil MacFarquhar and Victoria Kim contributed reporting.

Valerie Hopkins covers the war in Ukraine and how the conflict is changing Russia, Ukraine, Europe and the United States. She is based in Moscow. More about Valerie Hopkins

Ivan Nechepurenko covers Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, the countries of the Caucasus, and Central Asia. He is based in Moscow. More about Ivan Nechepurenko

Aric Toler is a reporter on the Visual Investigations team at The Times where he uses emerging techniques of discovery to analyze open source information. More about Aric Toler

Anton Troianovski is the Moscow bureau chief for The Times. He writes about Russia, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. More about Anton Troianovski

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Former Lions DB Cameron Sutton turns himself in after weeks-long police search

• Cornerback wanted over allegations of domestic violence
• 29-year-old surrenders to authorities in Florida

Cam Sutton has turned himself in, ending a weeks-long search for the former NFL defensive back who was wanted for a domestic violence warrant. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office announced the 29-year-old arrived at a jail in Tampa, Florida, on Sunday night, nearly a week after his attorney informed authorities that the former Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers standout would turn himself in. “After weeks of evading law enforcement, this man has finally made the right choice to turn himself in,” Hillsborough County sheriff Chad Chronister said. “Domestic violence has no place in our community, and no one is above the law here in Hillsborough County. My thoughts are with this woman as she continues to heal from this man’s gruesome actions.” Sutton’s initial arrest warrant charged him with a felony, but prosecutors said Monday he was being formally charged with misdemeanor battery, which carries a maximum one-year jail sentence. Sutton was released from jail on Monday on his own recognizance, the state attorney’s office said.

The sheriff’s department responded to a call about domestic violence in progress involving Sutton and a female around 5am on 7 March. Nearly two weeks ago, the sheriff’s office asked for help in finding Sutton. Soon thereafter, Lions president Rod Wood said Sutton was at the team’s training facility just outside of Detroit. He said a member of Lions staff advised Sutton to turn himself in.

“Suggested he get counsel and do the right thing to turn himself in,” Wood told Detroit station Fox 2. “After that, we met the rest of the day and the following morning to decide to release him [from his contract].” Detroit signed Sutton to a $33m, three-year contract a year ago although the final two years are voided after the Lions released him. He helped the franchise win a division title for the first time in three decades along with two playoff games in one postseason for the first time since 1957. He started in all 17 regular season games, making a career-high 65 tackles and one interception, and in each of Detroit’s three playoff games. Sutton started 31 games for the Steelers during the 2021 and ‘22 seasons with five interceptions with 95 tackles. Pittsburgh drafted the former Tennessee star, who is from Jonesboro, Georgia, in the third round in 2017. He has nine interceptions in 101 games over his career.

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Former Lions defensive back Cameron Sutton turns himself in after weeks of evading law enforcement

FILE - Detroit Lions cornerback Cameron Sutton (1) looks on from the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Oct. 22, 2023, in Baltimore. A Florida sheriff’s department on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, said it has a domestic violence warrant seeking the arrest of Sutton and asked for public help in finding him. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams, File)

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TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Cameron Sutton has turned himself in, ending a weekslong search for the former NFL defensive back who was wanted on a domestic violence warrant.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office announced the 29-year-old Sutton arrived at a jail in Tampa, Florida, on Sunday night, nearly a week after it said his attorney informed authorities that the former Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers standout would turn himself in.

“After weeks of evading law enforcement, this man has finally made the right choice to turn himself in,” Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said. “Domestic violence has no place in our community, and no one is above the law here in Hillsborough County. My thoughts are with this woman as she continues to heal from this man’s gruesome actions.”

Sutton’s initial arrest warrant charged him with a felony, but prosecutors said Monday he was being formally charged with misdemeanor battery, which carries a maximum one-year jail sentence. Sutton was released from jail Monday on his own recognizance, the state attorney’s office said.

The sheriff’s department responded to a call about domestic violence in progress involving Sutton and a female around 5 a.m. on March 7. Nearly two weeks ago, the sheriff’s office asked for help in finding Sutton.

Soon thereafter, Lions President Rod Wood said Sutton had been at the team’s training facility just outside of Detroit.

“We learned about the warrant at the same time everybody else did on social media,” Wood told WJBK-TV Fox 2 last Monday. “We were able to speak to Cam because he was actually in our building. We found him. He was down with our strength staff. He kind of showed up unexpectedly to work out.”

The Lions released Sutton on March 21 after news of the warrant surfaced.

Detroit signed Sutton to a $33 million, three-year contract a year ago. He helped the franchise win a division title for the first time in three decades along with two playoff games in one postseason for the first time since 1957.

He started in all 17 regular-season games, making a career-high 65 tackles and one interception, and in each of Detroit’s three playoff games.

Sutton started 31 games for the Steelers during the 2021 and ’22 seasons with five interceptions with 95 tackles. Pittsburgh drafted the former Tennessee star, who is from Jonesboro, Georgia, in the third round in 2017. He has nine interceptions in 101 games over his career.

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Russian authorities say at least 115 killed in Moscow concert hall attack

ISIL says it was behind attack on Crocus City Hall after gunmen in combat fatigues opened fire during a rock concert.

Gunmen in combat fatigues opened fire and detonated explosives at Moscow’s Crocus City Hall killing at least 115 people and injuring 187 in a brazen attack claimed by the ISIL (ISIS) group .

At least five camouflage-clad gunmen with automatic weapons burst into the packed concert hall in the Russian capital’s western suburbs on Friday night as the audience was gathering to watch the veteran rock band Picnic, shooting into the crowd and setting off explosives that started a massive fire.

Keep reading

More than 130 killed in moscow concert hall attack, russia-ukraine war: list of key events, day 758, moscow concert hall attack: what do we know so far, ‘heinous, cowardly’: world reacts to attack on moscow concert hall.

At least 115 people have been confirmed killed, Russia’s Investigative Committee said on Saturday, adding that the number of victims was expected to rise further.

At least 187 people including eight children were injured.

Health officials earlier said 60 of the injured were in critical condition.

ISIL, the hardline group that once sought control over Iraq and Syria, claimed responsibility for the attack on its Telegram channel, saying the gunmen had escaped. It was not possible to independently verify the claim.

On Saturday, a spokesperson for Russia’s Investigative Committee said it was too early to say anything about the fate of the attackers, state news agency RIA reported.

The concert hall, one of the most popular in Moscow, can hold some 6,200 people.

Alexei, a music producer, was about to settle into his seat ahead when he said he heard “several machineguns bursts” and “a lot of screams”.

“I realised right away that it was automatic gunfire and understood that most likely it’s the worst: a terrorist attack,” Alexei told the AFP news agency, declining to share his full name.

As people ran towards the emergency exits, “there was a terrible crush” with concertgoers climbing on one another’s heads to get out, he added.

Another witness, speaking to the Reuters news agency, also described the terror and panic inside the venue.

“A stampede began. Everyone ran to the escalator,” they said, declining to share their name. “Everyone was screaming; everyone was running.”

The attack, which left the concert hall in flames and its roof in a state of collapse, was one of the worst in Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege in which more than 330 people, half of them children, were killed. The death toll appeared set to rise, according to unconfirmed reports.

Reporting from Moscow, Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari said that while the capital was not under lockdown or a curfew, “a number of events over the weekend here have been cancelled, including concerts”.

Russian officials said security has been tightened at Moscow’s airports, railway stations and on the metro system. The mayor cancelled all mass gatherings, while theatres and museums in the area, home to more than 21 million people, were ordered shut for the weekend. Other Russian regions also tightened security.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Friday’s raid was a “huge tragedy.” President Vladimir Putin was being given continuous updates about the situation, according to his spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Putin also wished a speedy recovery to those injured, state news agency TASS reported on Saturday, citing Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova.

An ‘act of terrorism’

The prosecutor’s office said several men in combat fatigues had entered the concert hall, about 20km (12 miles) from the Kremlin and next to the Moscow ring road, and fired on those inside.

Repeated volleys of gunfire could be heard in videos posted by Russian media and on Telegram channels. One showed two men with rifles moving through the venue. Another showed a man in the auditorium saying the assailants had set it on fire, as repeated gunshots rang out in the background.

Others showed up to four attackers, armed with assault rifles and wearing caps, shooting screaming people at point-blank range.

Security guards at the concert hall were not armed, and Russian media said some could have been killed at the start of the attack.

ISIL, in a statement posted by its Amaq news agency, claimed its fighters had attacked on the outskirts of Moscow, “killing and wounding hundreds and causing great destruction to the place before they withdrew to their bases safely”.

Russia has reported several incidents involving ISIL this month, with authorities saying they killed six alleged members of the group in a shootout in Ingushetia in the restive Caucasus region, and the Federal Security Service (FSB) saying on March 7 it foiled an attack by Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP) , an Afghan affiliate of ISIL, on a Moscow synagogue.

The United States had also warned of a heightened threat. Several hours after the FSB announcement, the US embassy in Moscow issued a warning that “extremists” had imminent plans for an attack in Moscow. On Friday night, a US official said Washington had intelligence confirming ISIL’s claim of responsibility for the attack on Crocus City Hall.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said what had happened was a “bloody terrorist attack”. Investigators from Russia’s Investigative Committee, which deals with major crimes, said they had “opened a criminal probe under article 205 of the criminal code [terrorist act]”.

There was condemnation of the attack from across the world .

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his shock at the attack, which his spokesman said he “condemns in the strongest possible terms”, while the UN Security Council condemned what it called a “heinous and cowardly terrorist attack.”

French President Emmanuel Macron “strongly condemns the terrorist attack claimed by the Islamic State”, the Elysee Palace said.

“France expresses its solidarity with the victims, their loved ones and all the Russian people.”

Spain said it was “shocked” at events in Moscow, while Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned what she said was an “odious act of terrorism” and expressed her “full solidarity with the affected people and the victims’ families”.

Engulfed in flames

The Kremlin did not immediately blame anyone for the attack, but some Russian lawmakers were quick to accuse Ukraine .

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev wrote on the Telegram app that if those responsible for the attack turn out to be Ukrainian, “all of them must be found and ruthlessly destroyed as terrorists”.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, denied Ukraine’s involvement.

“Ukraine has never resorted to the use of terrorist methods,” he posted on X. “Everything in this war will be decided only on the battlefield.”

Rosgvardia, Russia’s national guard, said it was searching for the perpetrators of the attack, and its units were helping evacuate concertgoers from the burning building.

Rescue services had evacuated about 100 people from the basement of the Crocus City Hall, but there are still people on the roof, Russian news agencies reported.

Media reports said firefighters were trying to contain the fire, as plumes of black smoke rose above the venue into the night sky.

Helicopters were also deployed in an attempt to douse the flames that had engulfed the building.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, authorities said most of the fire had been put out.

“There are still some pockets of fire, but the fire has been mostly eliminated. Rescuers were able to enter the auditorium,” Moscow Governor Andrey Vorobyov said on Telegram.

Detroit Lions | Former Lions CB Cameron Sutton turns himself in…

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Detroit Lions

Detroit lions | former lions cb cameron sutton turns himself in to authorities, sutton was sought on an arrest warrant for domestic violence.

Former Detroit Lions cornerback Cam Sutton turned himself into at the Orient Road Jail in Florida Sunday, in response to an arrest warrant issued for allegations of domestic battery by strangulation.

Supporters of the Lions were shocked when the department posted a message on social media asking for help locating Sutton after failed attempts to contact the NFL player.

According to the department, the incident occurred on March 7. Police responded to a call regarding it, but Sutton fled the scene and had not been contacted after.

The Lions released Sutton 24 hours after the news became public.

“We became aware of the ongoing legal situation involving Cam Sutton this morning,” the Lions said in a statement. “We will continue to monitor the situation and will not have further comment at this time.”

Sutton signed a three-year, $33 million contract with the organization in the 2023 offseason. He finished his first campaign in Detroit with 65 tackles and one interception, but struggled throughout the end of the regular season and three postseason games while matched up with opposing top wide receivers.

He was scheduled to make $10.5 million in 2024 and carries a cap hit of $12.68 million. The Tennessee product entered the league as a third-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2017.

At the annual owners meeting, team president Rod Wood raised eyebrows when it was revealed the veteran defensive back was in Allen Park at the team’s practice facility when the warrant was announced.

The Lions have addressed the cornerback room in the offseason by trading for Carlton Davis and signing Amik Robertson.

This article was produced by the staff at Sports Illustrated/All Lions. For more, visit si.com/nfl/lions

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Moscow concert attack: More than 60 reported dead; ISIS claims responsibility

This live blog has ended. For the most recent updates, please click here .

What we know about the Moscow concert attack

• Men in camouflage broke into a Moscow concert hall and opened fire, shooting an unknown number of people, Russia’s prosecutor general said.
• The terror group ISIS has claimed responsibility but did not provide proof of the claim, which was made on ISIS-affiliated news agency Amaq on Telegram.
• Russia's Investigative Committee said that more than 60 people are dead after the attack at Crocus City Hall. Officials have said more than 100 others were injured.
• A fire also started inside Crocus City Hall, a large concert venue northwest of central Moscow. Firefighters have evacuated about 100 people from the basement of the building and efforts are underway to rescue people from the roof, Russian emergency officials said.
• Russia officials said they were investigating the attack as a terrorist act.
• A popular rock band was scheduled to play what appeared to be a sold-out show at the venue, which has a maximum capacity of more than 9,000 people.

Three children among those killed, state media reports

Chantal Da Silva

Three children were among the more than 60 people killed in yesterday's attack at Crocus City Hall, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported, citing the Russian Ministry of Health.

Officials have warned that the death toll connected to the deadly incident may increase as the investigation continues.

Xi sends condolences to Putin

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent condolences to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday after a deadly shooting at a concert hall near Moscow, saying China opposes all forms of terrorism and strongly condemns terrorist attacks.

China firmly supports the Russian government’s efforts to maintain national security and stability, Xi said, according to CCTV state television. 

Moscow bloodshed comes two decades after some of worst attacks in Russia

Phil Helsel

The shooting attacks in Moscow are the latest in a series of deadly terror attacks in the country since the 2000s.

In 2004, militants from Chechnya and elsewhere took hostages at a school in Beslan in southern Russia.

The militants demanded a withdrawal from Chechnya. Hostages were kept in a gymnasium, and 334 died — half of them children — when gunfire and explosions erupted when it was stormed. Hostages’ families were critical of the rescue operation. Russian prosecutors later cleared authorities .

Two years prior, in 2002, Chechen separatists attacked the Dubrovka Theater in Moscow and took more than 700 people hostage. Russian forces used gas, and 129 hostages died. The attackers were killed.

More recently, in 2017 a suicide bomber from Kyrgyzstan killed 15 people as well as himself in an attack on a St. Petersburg subway. In 2013, two bombers killed a combined 34 people in attacks on a railway station and a trolleybus in Volgograd.

The group Islamic State, also known as ISIS, claimed responsibility for the attacks Friday at the Crocus City Hall venue.

Putin wishes victims well, deputy prime minister says

President Vladimir Putin is thinking of those injured in today’s attack and thanked doctors, a Russian government official said according to state media.

State media TASS reported that “Putin wished all those injured in the emergency at Crocus City Hall to recover and conveyed his gratitude to the doctors, Golikova said,” referring to Tatiana Golikova deputy prime minister for social policy, labor, health and pension provision.

More than 60 dead, and death toll could grow, Russian agency says

Russia’s Investigative Committee said Saturday that more than 60 people have died in the attack, and warned the number may increase.

“The bodies of the dead are being examined. It has been previously established that more than 60 people died as a result of the terrorist attack. Unfortunately, the number of victims may increase,” according to the Investigative Committee, which is a federal state agency.

Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs and the security agency FSB are continuing to investigate, the committee said in a statement, and weapons and ammunition have been found.

U.S. warned Russia about planned terrorist attack in Moscow, NSC says

Monica Alba

The United States shared information about a potential terrorist attack in Moscow with Russia’s government earlier this month, a spokesperson for the National Security Council said.

The U.S. Embassy in Russia on March 7 warned U.S. citizens to avoid crowds and said it was monitoring reports that extremists might attack large gatherings in Moscow.

“Earlier this month, the U.S. Government had information about a planned terrorist attack in Moscow — potentially targeting large gatherings, to include concerts — which prompted the State Department to issue a public advisory to Americans in Russia,” NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson said.

“The U.S. Government also shared this information with Russian authorities in accordance with its longstanding ‘duty to warn’ policy,” Watson said.

Putin recently dismissed ‘provocative’ warning about potential attacks

In remarks that aired three days ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the West of “provocative statements” about potential terror attacks in Russia, and dismissed them.

“I’ll remind you of recent, let’s say directly, provocative statements of certain official Western structures about potential terror attacks in Russia,” Putin said.

“All of this looks like obvious blackmail and an attempt to intimidate, destabilize our country,” he said before the state security agency FSB.

Putin in those remarks did not specify a country or warning. The U.S. embassy in Russia on March 7 warned U.S. citizens to avoid crowds .

“The Embassy is monitoring reports that extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts, and U.S. citizens should be advised to avoid large gatherings over the next 48 hours,” the U.S. embassy warned.

Guards at concert hall didn't have guns, state news says

The Associated Press

Guards at the concert hall didn’t have guns, and some could have been killed at the start of the attack, Russian media reported.

Some Russian news outlets suggested the assailants fled before special forces and riot police arrived.

Reports said police patrols were looking for several vehicles the attackers could have used to escape.

U.S. had been gathering intelligence that ISIS could attack Russia

Ken Dilanian

The U.S. had been gathering intelligence for months that ISIS could mount a mass casualty attack in Russia, two U.S. officials confirmed to NBC News.

That information led to a March 7 warning issued by the U.S. embassy in Russia about possible extremist attacks, including at concerts, urging people to stay away from large gatherings, one of the officials said.

That official said the claim of responsibility today by ISIS appears to be genuine, though no final assessment had been made about who was responsible.

Some Moscow concertgoers filmed events as they unfolded Friday night, when gunmen opened fire inside a theater and people ran to take cover in fear for their lives.

Witness says gunfire was first thought to be construction noise

A witness to today’s armed attack on Moscow’s Crocus City Hall told a state news agency that they first mistook the gunfire for sounds of an installation being dismantled.

“First, we started hearing typical loud pops, but it was impossible to understand that they were gunshots. We thought that something was falling, as exhibitions were being dismantled at that moment, and someone seemed to be dropping something large,” Mikhail Semyonov told TASS .

“Then, the bangs were getting more and more frequent. Suddenly, there was a scream, and the bangs started to be heard as bursts. Then it became clear that it was shooting,” he said.

ISIS claims responsibility for attack but does not provide proof

The terror group Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack in Moscow.

The group, also known as ISIS, did not provide any proof of its claim, which came from ISIS-affiliated news agency Amaq on Telegram.

The group’s members have carried out a number of terror attacks, including the 2015 attacks in Paris that killed 130 people.

Children among the victims, Russia's children commissioner says

Yuliya Talmazan

Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, said children were among the victims of tonight's attack.

"Information about their condition is regularly updated," Lvova-Belova said on Telegram. "Any additional assistance will be provided immediately."

She later told Russia 24 TV channel that at least two children had been injured, including one boy with a gunshot wound.

Earlier, Russian officials released a preliminary casualty toll of at least 40 people dead and more than 100 injured.

France, U.K., Germany condemn attack

Officials from France, the U.K. and Germany were among those who expressed their condolences to the victims of the attack at the Crocus concert hall.

"The images of the terrible attack on innocent people in Crocus City Hall near #Moscow are horrific," Germany's Foreign Office said on X . "The background must be investigated quickly. Our deepest condolences with the families of the victims."

"We condemn the terrorist attack in the Crocus City Hall near Moscow," the U.K.'s embassy in Russia said . "This is a terrible tragedy."

Meanwhile, France's foreign ministry called for "full light" to be shed on "these heinous acts."

Public events across Russia called off after attack

Several regional leaders across Russia, including in the annexed Kherson region of Ukraine, have canceled public events this weekend over security considerations after the deadly concert attack in Moscow.

Shortly after the attack, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin canceled all sports, cultural and other public events in Moscow this weekend. State news agency TASS also quoted Russia's cultural ministry as saying that mass and entertainment events in federal cultural institutions have been canceled in the coming days.

Zelenskyy adviser speaks out about attack

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s adviser denied that Ukraine was involved in the deadly Crocus concert hall attack.

“Ukraine certainly has nothing to do with the shooting/explosions in the Crocus City Hall (Moscow Region, Russia),” Mykhailo Podolyak wrote on X. “It makes no sense whatsoever.”

No evidence has emerged to suggest Ukraine may have been involved, but Ukrainian officials may be trying to pre-empt accusations, as some Kremlin hawks have already started pointing at Kyiv. 

Asked whether the shooting was at all tied to the war in Ukraine, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said: “There is no indication at this time that Ukraine, or Ukrainians, were involved in the shooting, but again, this just broke. We’re taking a look at it, but I would disabuse you at this early hour have any connection to Ukraine.”

Videos posted to social media appear to show chaos inside Moscow's Crocus City Hall during and after a terrorist attack.

Some videos include what sound like gunshots and show men with rifles, as concertgoers frantically try to exit the venue.

State Department issues warning to Americans in Moscow

Jason Abbruzzese

The State Department said that the U.S. Embassy in Moscow is aware of the terrorist attack on Crocus City Hall and that U.S. citizens should avoid the area and follow the instructions of local authorities.

"The U.S. government’s ability to provide routine or emergency services to U.S. citizens in Russia is severely limited, particularly in areas far from the U.S. embassy in Moscow, due to Russian government limitations on travel for U.S. embassy personnel and staffing, and the ongoing suspension of operations, including consular services, at U.S. consulates in Russia," the State Department said in a message posted to its website .

'What a nightmare in Crocus,' Widow of opposition leader Alexei Navalny condolences about concert attack

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny who died in prison last month, expressed her condolences about the attack Friday.

"What a nightmare in Crocus," Navalnaya wrote on X. "Condolences to the families of the victims and quick recovery to the injured. Everyone involved in this crime must be found and held accountable."

320 firefighters, 3 helicopters working to put out fire

Russia's Ministry of Emergency Situations said the number of rescue crews responding to the attack is growing and now includes more than 320 firefighters, 130 emergency vehicles and three helicopters dumping water on the burning concert venue.

Moscow regional governor says 40 dead, more than 100 injured

Moscow Regional Governor Andrei Vorobyov said on Telegram that at least 40 people are dead and more than 100 injured in the terrorist attack, confirming figures previously reported by Russian state news.

Putin informed about concert venue attack 'in the first minutes,' Kremlin spokesperson says

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin was informed about the shooting at the Crocus concert hall "in the first minutes" of the attack, Russian state news agency RIA reported.

The president is receiving information about what is happening and the measures being taken through all relevant services and is giving necessary instructions, Peskov said according to RIA.

Russian journalist was inside concert venue when gunmen entered

Russian news agency RIA Novosti said on Telegram that one of its reporters was inside the venue when gunmen entered and began shooting concertgoers.

The journalist said that at least three unmasked gunmen in camouflage entered the hall a few minutes before 8 p.m. Moscow time. They shot people point-blank and threw incendiary bombs, according to the journalist.

Russia's foreign ministry spokesperson calls incident 'bloody terrorist attack'

Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for Russia's foreign ministry, called the Friday night incident at the Crocus City Hall in Moscow a "bloody terrorist attack" as she called for "strong condemnation" from the international community.

"Now, as the Russian authorities have stated, all efforts are being devoted to saving people," Zakharova said. "The entire world community is obliged to condemn this monstrous crime!"

U.S. national security spokesperson says embassy has told Americans to avoid large gatherings in Moscow

Kyla Guilfoil

National Security Council Spokesman John Kirby addressed the attack in Moscow at a White House press briefing Friday afternoon, calling it a “terrible, terrible shooting attack.”

“The images are just horrible and just hard to watch and our thoughts obviously are going to be with the the victims,” Kirby said.

Kirby added that the U.S. embassy has notified all Americans in Moscow to avoid large gatherings, concerts, shopping malls, etc., and “stay put where they are” for their safety.

Russian media says 40 dead, more than 100 injured at concert attack

TASS, Russia's state-owned news agency, and RIA Novosti are reporting that Russia's FSB security agency has put the preliminary casualty count at 40 dead and more than 100 injured by a terrorist attack on a Moscow-area concert venue.

NBC News has not confirmed those casualty numbers.

Roof of concert venue at risk of collapse, Russian media says

Russian news agency RIA Novosti said on Telegram that the roof of the building near the concert venue's stage has begun to collapse.

Video posted to Telegram by RIA Novosti showed fire continue to blaze inside the venue.

Moscow area governor says more than 70 ambluances at scene of attack

Andrei Vorobyov, Moscow's regional governor, said on Telegram that more than 70 ambulances have been dispatched to the scene of concert venue attack.

“Everything is being done at the scene to save people," he wrote in the Telegram message. "The Special Rapid Response Unit (SOBR) has been deployed. There are over 70 ambulance carriages near Crocus, doctors provide the necessary assistance to all victims."

Nigel Chiwaya

Russia’s prosecutor general office says number of victims still being determined

Russia's prosecutor general said on Telegram that officials are working to determine how many people have been killed or hurt in the concert attack.

“On behalf of Igor Krasnov, the prosecutor of the Moscow region has gone to the scene of the incident at Crocus City Hall to coordinate the actions of law enforcement agencies," the prosecutor general's Telegram account posted. "Tonight, before the start of the event in the concert hall in Krasnogorsk, unknown men in camouflage clothes broke into the building and started shooting."

"The number of victims is being determined, a fire started in the entertainment center building, and citizens are being evacuated."

Moscow's mayor cancels weekend events

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram that he was canceling all public events in Moscow this weekend.

"I have taken the decision to cancel all sports, cultural and other public events in Moscow this weekend," he said. "I ask of you to treat this measure with understanding."

Popular rock band was to play sold-out venue that can hold 9,500

Tim Stelloh

A popular rock band was scheduled to play what appeared to be a sold-out show at the Moscow concert hall where there were reports of gunmen in combat fatigues opening fire.

Picnic, formed in 1978, was to play at Crocus City Hall, west of central Moscow.

The multilevel facility in Krasnogorsk has a maximum capacity of 9,527 people. Booking sites show the event was sold out.

Russia's aviation agency says additional security added to Moscow airports

The Russian aviation agency Rosaviatsiya said that additional security measures are being introduced in Moscow airports

"Due to increased security measures, we ask passengers to arrive at Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Zhukovsky airports in advance," the agency said on the Telegram messaging app.

Moscow's emergency ministry says it is working to extinguish fire

Moscow’s emegency ministry said it was working to extinguish a fire that began at the music venue.

The ministry said about 100 people were evacuated from the building, and it was working to rescue people from the roof.

Russian media says state security taking action

Russia's news outlet RIA Novosti said that the country's security agency, the FSB, is taking measures to respond to the shooting at a concert hall near Moscow.

Videos posted by Russian media show men with rifles moving through area

Extended rounds of gunfire could be heard on multiple videos posted by Russian media and Telegram channels. One showed two men with rifles moving through a concert hall. Another one showed a man inside the auditorium, saying the assailants set it on fire, with incessant gunshots ringing out in the background.

Andrei Vorobyov, the governor of the Moscow region, said he was heading to the area and set up a task force to deal with the damage. He didn’t immediately offer any further details.

Russian media reports said that riot police units were being sent to the area as people were being evacuated.

Russian news outlets report gunman opened fire at Moscow concert hall

Several gunmen in combat fatigues burst into a big concert hall in Moscow on Friday and fired automatic weapons at the crowd, injuring an unspecified number of people, Russian media said.

Russian news reports said that the assailants also used explosives, causing a massive blaze at the Crocus City Hall on the western edge of Moscow. Video posted on social media showed huge plumes of black smoke rising over the building.

Russia’s state RIA Novosti news agency reported that at least three people in combat fatigues fired weapons. The state Tass news agency also reported the shooting.

U.S. warned of imminent Moscow attack by ‘extremists,’ urges citizens to avoid crowds

Patrick Smith

U.S. citizens in  Moscow  had been warned to avoid large gatherings earlier this month because of heightened fears of a terrorist attack.

The U.S. Embassy in the Russian capital said it was “monitoring reports that extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts, and U.S. citizens should be advised to avoid large gatherings over the next 48 hours.”

U.S. citizens should avoid crowds, monitor local media for updates and “be aware of your surroundings,” it said in a brief  online update .

Read the full story here.

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Cameron Sutton, former Lions star, turns himself in after being wanted on domestic violence charge

Sutton showed up at a tampa, florida, jail on sunday night.

Ex-Lions player Cameron Sutton turns himself in to Florida jail

Former Detroit Lions cornerback Cameron Sutton turned himself in after Florida authorities wanted him on a domestic violence charge.

Cameron Sutton, a former Detroit Lions cornerback who was wanted by police in Florida last month for a domestic violence warrant, turned himself in on Sunday night.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office released a video showing Sutton, 29, arriving at a jail in Tampa. Sutton was wanted for domestic battery by strangulation, which is a third-degree felony and could result in a prison term of up to five years.

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Cameron Sutton of the Detroit Lions during the national anthem prior to the Ravens game at M&T Bank Stadium on Oct. 22, 2023, in Baltimore. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)

"After weeks of evading law enforcement, this man has finally made the right choice to turn himself in," Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said. "Domestic violence has no place in our community, and no one is above the law here in Hillsborough County. My thoughts are with this woman as she continues to heal from this man’s gruesome actions."

The Lions released Sutton after police announced he was being sought.

Authorities said officers responded to a call about domestic violence in progress involving the former Pittsburgh Steelers player and a female around 5 a.m. on March 7. The sheriff’s office then asked the public for help trying to find Sutton.

Lions president Rod Wood said at the time that Sutton was at the team’s training facility when the warrant was issued.

Cameron Sutton of the Lions reacts after a stop against the Denver Broncos at Ford Field on Dec. 16, 2023, in Detroit. (Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

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"We learned about the warrant at the same time everybody else did on social media," Wood told Fox 2 Detroit last week. "We were able to speak to Cam because he was actually in our building. We found him. He was down with our strength staff. He kind of showed up unexpectedly to work out."

Sutton signed a three-year, $30 million deal with the Lions before the start of the 2023 season after spending six years with the Steelers. He played and started all 17 games for Detroit and their three playoff games.

He had a career-high 65 tackles and an interception in 2023. He was projected to be a starting cornerback going into the 2024 season along with newly signed Carlton Davis.

Pittsburgh selected the Jonesboro, Georgia, native in the third round of the 2017 draft out of Tennessee. He earned his way to being a starting cornerback in his fifth season with Pittsburgh.

An arrest warrant was issued for Detroit Lions cornerback Cameron Sutton. (Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office; Getty Images)

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With the Steelers, he had 168 total tackles in 84 career games along with eight interceptions.

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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

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Turquie: après les scènes de violence lors de Trabzonspor-Fenerbahçe, des joueurs en conseil de discipline

Deux semaines après une affaire qui a chamboulé le monde du football , la fédération turque prend des décisions. Des convocations ont été envoyées à plusieurs membres des clubs de Trabzonspor et du Fenerbahçe après les scènes de violences à l'issue d'un match de Championnat entre les deux formations le 17 mars dernier.

Bright Osayi-Samuel, deux autres joueurs de Fenerbahçe, dont le défenseur néerlandais Jayden Oosterwolde et deux employés du club sont également convoqués pour des "bagarres", a annoncé la Fédération turque dans un communiqué. Un entraîneur adjoint de Trabzonspor passera également devant le conseil de discipline.

Des scènes impensables sur un terrain de football

Les images étaient à peine croyables. Le 17 mars, une foule de supporters avait envahi la pelouse du stade de Trabzonspor au coup de sifflet final d'une rencontre de première division perdue par leur équipe, tandis que les joueurs de Fenerbahçe, un des trois grands clubs d'Istanbul, célébraient leur victoire.

Le latéral droit du Fener, Bright Osayi-Samuel, avait asséné un puissant coup de poing à l'un de ces supporters, entré sur le terrain le visage masqué. Le défenseur néerlandais Jayden Oosterwolde avait été aussi auteur d'un coup de pied au même supporter.

L'échauffourée avait provoqué de vives réactions en Turquie, trois mois après une violente agression d'un arbitre par un dirigeant de club à l'issue d'une rencontre de Süper Lig. Le patron de la Fifa, Gianni Infantino, a dénoncé des violences "absolument inacceptables".

• Incidents avec Fenerbahçe : Pourquoi tant de violence en Turquie ? Réponse d'un journaliste turc
• Turquie: "Il y avait un sentiment de peur pour nos vies", décrit Djiku après l'attaque des supporteurs de Trabzonspor
• France, Belgique, Espagne, Pays-Bas, Italie... Fenerbahçe envisage de rejoindre un autre championnat

Treize supporters de Trabzonspor avaient été arrêtés dans la foulée, dont cinq ont été placés en détention provisoire. Le secrétaire général de Trabzonspor, Kemal Ertürk, a demandé la semaine dernière que ces supporters "arrêtés injustement (...) soient libérés le plus rapidement possible". Pour rappel, les dirigeants du club stambouliote ont menacé de quitter leur Championnat .

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