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Stadium safety and security are ongoing concerns for
football bodies around the world.
Tragically, football has seen more than its share of deaths
from stampedes, overcrowding of stadiums, fires and
other hazards. In June last year, FIFA and AFC held a joint
workshop for National Security Officers in Asia, in the hope
of teaching security officers how to ensure safety inside
and outside stadiums. The panel was led by FIFA experts
Walter Gagg and Adnan El Guindy, as well as Malaysia’s
FIFA Security Officer Datuk Dell Akbar Khan and FIFA
Development Officer Windsor John. The plan is to hold
similar workshops in each confederation.
FIFA made this decision following the death of 19 fans and
more than 130 injuries in a crush at the Felix Houphouet-
Boigny Stadium in Abidjan before Ivory Coast played Malawi
in March.
One of the solutions stressed by the panel was the need for
full-time and qualified National Security Officers. Currently,
Asia has only four Security Officers on the FIFA panel.
“FIFA will support all Football Associations
(FAs) and National Security Officers,” said
Al Guindy. “But at the end, if they cannot
meet the requirements and if stadiums do
not comply with certain standards, it will be
banned from use.”
While in theory this seems simple, a major
obstacle to proper stadium management is
ownership. In many cases around the world,
stadiums are owned by the government or by
private concerns. Still, FIFA is insisting that
Football Associations work with owners to ensure proper
crowd management.
“Although we know that stadiums are sometimes not
controlled by FAs, there should be a proper balance
between the facilities available and the spectators,” said
Al Guindy. “FAs should be encouraged to share information
between the local people, police, fire department, security
and stewards. If there are problems, the FA should seek
advice from FIFA.”
The ability to empty a capacity stadium within eight
minutes is one of the FIFA regulations. If facility managers
are not able to do so, they should limit the capacity to a
manageable number. Other requirements include an the
outside perimeter which allows fans to spill out of the
stadium, match tickets sold away from stadiums and the
separation of spectators from players and the media.
In the past, many deaths have been attributed to fans
without tickets or with counterfeit tickets surging into
crowded areas.
Every step has been taken to protect
visitors to this year’s World Cup in
South Africa according to the chief
executive of the event.
Danny Jordaan made this assertion in
reply to concerns that South Africa’s
high crime rate.
“Yes, we have crime,” said Jordaan,
but he added that there was a
difference between “societal crime
and the ability to host a big event”.
Jordaan argued that South Africa
had regularly proved itself capable of
hosting international sporting events,
starting with the Rugby World Cup in
1995, just a year after the country’s
first democratic elections.
He pointed out that the government
had invested about R1.3 billion
in World Cup security. There will
South Africa promises a safe World Cup
be 41,000 police officers at the
tournament, with about 700 at each
match.
“The Rugby World Cup, the Cricket
World Cup, the Athletics World Cup
and now the Football World Cup,” he
said. “In golf too - the Presidents Cup
and other major events. You cannot
mention more than 10 countries in
the world with that kind of event
profile.”
Stadium safety in the spotlight
“We insist that fans have tickets before they are
allowed into the stadium. And tickets should never
be sold on match day at the stadium,” said Al Guindy.
“Even if the match is free of charge, the organiser
should still print tickets and only allow those with
tickets to go inside.”
Insight
22