Policy WHAT IS MISSING TO KEEP VIOLENCE

Brief OUT OF COLOMBIAN STADIUMS?

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Policy Problem

Despite the hopes and efforts for change, Colombia's stadiums face a new wave of violence
in 2023. Stadiums and their surroundings, which for years were places of celebration and
joy with family and friends, are now once again places where young fans are killed, public
order is disturbed, and crime and violent confrontations happen. As a result, families keep
moving away from the stadium, clubs continue to lose money and credibility, the police do
not want to be held accountable, and government policies are impotent and unable to
improve behavior at football matches.

Policy Assessment

Nine years after formulating and developing the Ten-Year Plan for Safety, Comfort, and
Coexistence in football, implementation has failed in several areas. The resurgence of
violence is a sign of the lack of defined leadership, roles, budgets, and effective monitoring
instruments in the policy. Although national and regional regulations have emerged within
the framework of the Plan, the lack of coordination and clarity about the steps to follow is
evident. Today, the country needs a renewed policy under the leadership of the new
Ministry of Equity and Equality to reorient the national public policy for football in stadiums.

Policy Recommendations

Alejandro • Leadership of the new Ministry of Equality and Equity

Unified systems of information and identification of stadium attendees
Laguna •
• A single regulatory decree integrating all actors

710505 • Fan coaching processes

Oct 2023

CONTEXT AND PROBLEM
In 2023, Colombian professional soccer celebrated its 75th
anniversary amid a critical moment. Multiple
invasions, fights in the stands, harassment of players and
coaches, and confrontations with the police at
entrance and exit of matches, among others, are a
reflection of the growing wave of violence that has shaken
Colombian stadiums in recent months. Almost every
match day, Colombians, and more precisely football fans,
already seem to be accustomed to violence, suspension of
matches, and total or partial closure of stadiums. The
questions are many, the answers are often the same as a
few years ago, and those responsible for dealing with the
problem seem impotent in the face of public criticism from
society.
Understanding that this problem lies in a social, economic,
cultural, and political context that historically and
structurally has been as violent as the Colombian one and
that in addition to this, social phenomena such as the so-
pitch called hooligans have derived from it, this policy brief
seeks to focus on the formulation and implementation of
the public policy on violent behavior in stadiums and their
surroundings.
Once this agenda-setting exercise is complete, and
understanding that the typology of violence in stadiums is
a tamed problem with a high certainty of knowledge and
consensus on benchmarks, this policy brief will have three
key points regarding the formulation and implementation
of the public policy cycle. First, from a rational approach
to policy making, a causal analysis of the cause-effect
relationships of the problem and the deficiency in the
implementation of public policy. Finally, emphasizing the
relevance of the top-down model, recommendations will
be given for the successful implementation of public
policy.(Bekkers, Fenger, & Scholten, 2017).

Why is what happens around football

important to Colombians?

Colombia is a country where soccer is more than just a

sport. According to figures from the national survey 'The
Power of Football' for 94% of Colombian citizens, football
symbolizes an important activity within the country's
The reality of this whole scenario is that today, Colombia popular culture "(...) because it contributes to keeping
faces a public safety problem with violent acts in and young people away from vice and violence; it gives them
around stadiums. According to data compiled by Sanchez opportunities, recreates, unites the country, contributes to
(2023) from the Attorney General's Office, Forensic physical well-being, teaches discipline and self-
Medicine, and media records, there have been 151 deaths improvement and generates identity". (National
in the last 12 years in fan-related incidents. If we add to Consulting Center, 2014, p.11).
this that in the first half of the year, an increase of 60%
in cases of soccer-related violence was reported compared This data complements the figures we can see in Figure
to 2022 (Ramirez, 2023), we find the sad reality that 1 regarding the number of fans of national teams.
these figures are equivalent to one Colombian fan killed There, we can see how in only 3 of the 36 professional
per month. teams in the country, there are approximately 26.4
million fans, which is equivalent to 50.57% of the
This scenario sets off alerts and raises a public policy
Colombian population.
challenge for Colombian soccer and the actors responsible
for its proper development. However, it is worth clarifying
Team City Millions of fans
that "it is not possible to talk about violence related to
soccer spectacles without understanding the social and Nacional Medellín 11 m
cultural role of soccer in contemporary societies and the
meaning that this sport has for young people and adults" Millonarios Bogotá 9m
(Elias & Dunning, 1992, as cited in Baldy dos Reis &
Zuaneti, 2020, p. 44), it is necessary to make a América Cali 6,4 m

distinction regarding the definition of the problem that

Figure 1. Number of supporters of the 3 main Colombian football
this policy paper will address. teams.
Note: Adapted from Vargas, 2022, Sondeo La República.

Pg. 2 Oct 2023

In addition, soccer is an activity that impacts different main ones created at the national level are Law 1356 of
sectors of the Colombian economy and society due to its 2009 on security in sporting events, Law 1523 of 2012 on
great popularity. According to figures from the National risk management, Decree 1717 of 2010 that adopts the
Administrative Department of Statistics (Dane), "this sport Protocol for Security, Comfort, and Coexistence in
generates around 1,600 jobs in Colombia and contributes Football, Law 1453 of 2011 that reforms the criminal
between 0.15% and 0.25% to the country's Gross code, and Decree 1007 of 2012 that collects the rights of
Domestic Product (GDP)" (Herrera, 2023). Sectors such as the fan. (Ministry of the Interior, 2014).
tourism, commerce, bars, gastro bars, and recently with
A legal development that led to the creation of the Ten-
higher growth, sports betting, find in each match day
Year Plan for Safety, Comfort, and Coexistence in soccer.
great opportunities to energize and grow their economy
A public policy attempt that sought to eradicate violence
and development.
inside and outside stadiums. (Ministry of the Interior,
The above shows us the importance of this sport for 2014)
different sectors of Colombian society and the urgency of
an effective public policy that returns healthy coexistence
Ten-Year Plan for Safety, Comfort
to the stadiums. The reality is that today, this is a
and Coexistence in Football 2014-
situation in which all stakeholders lose something,
2024
including the protagonists themselves. For example, data
indicate that a Colombian team stopped earning 918,000
euros in ticket sales due to riots in the stands. (Caicedo,
2018) A figure that could increase even more if we
consider the decrease in sponsorships and commercial
contracts.

Indeed, the concern and urgency are undeniable. If

adequate solutions are not formulated and implemented,
the cost will continue to increase for all involved. Thus, in
addition to the effects noted below (see Figure 2),
Colombian soccer will continue to watch with frustration
matches behind closed doors, or with half-empty stands
due to the fear of families being caught in the middle of a Referred to as an innovative public policy in Latin America
violent incident3. (Baracaldo, 2021), the Ten-Year Plan for Safety, Comfort,
and Coexistence in Soccer (2014-2024) was an
innovative effort that brought together the different
CURRENT POLICIES AND THEIR actors in the world of soccer in Colombia in the process of
LIMITS diagnostic and formulation. At an investment that
reached one million US dollars, and with the active
participation of more than three thousand Colombians
As Angarita (2018) asserts in the title of his article,
from different regions of the country, it is possible to
Colombia is a country where laws abound and legality is
affirm, one year away from the end of the projected ten
scarce. Historically, this reality has been present in
years, the plan has failed in how much the achievement
Colombian politics and has been referred to by different
of some objectives, which has not produced a decrease in
authors as punitive populism. A punitive populism that, in
violence
the face of social and popular pressure to punish and
penalize misconduct, creates new and more severe Understanding that in the case of a social problem such
criminal and or administrative sanctions, but without a as this, where "it is quite difficult to elaborate causal
real legislative agenda to develop. (Angarita, 2018) models or develop an intervention model because most
problems are not so simple as to be trapped in a linear
As a result, although it took over a decade of disorder and
and mechanistic cause-effect model" (Bekkers, Fenger, &
chaos in stadiums to create Law 1270 on safety and
Scholten, 2017, p. 122), the following is a causal model
coexistence in football, there is now a well-developed set
on the failure of 3 objectives of the Ten-Year Plan and its
of rules for practically everything. To mention briefly, the
effect on violence in stadiums.

1 Major Division of Colombian Football O c t 2023 Pg. 3

2 Fédération Internationale de Football Association

Where has the Ten-Year Plan failed?
Figure 1. Causal Model: violence in Colombian stadiums
Leadership and roles
Objective: To create a National Executive Instance for
security, comfort, and coexistence in Colombian soccer,
which allows the execution of plans, programs, and
projects, and to carry out the inter-institutional and
intersectoral coordination work resulting from the Ten-
Year Plan (Ministry of the Interior, 2014, p. 84).
The lack of leadership and roles has featured this problem
since its appearance in the public scenario. Even though
the formulation of the Plan had the Ministry of Interior's
leadership and budget, there has always been a lack of
political will to take responsibility for this problem. The
fact that violence occurs in stadiums and surrounding
public places, but as a consequence of private events led
by the Dimayor and the clubs, has been a reason for not
taking responsibility for the situation. (Clavijo, 2023) The
failure of the objective of the Ten-Year Plan regarding the
creation of a central coordinating body is an example of
this. Currently, it is the National Commission for Safety,
Comfort and Coexistence in Football, established in 2009,
which sporadically assumes some responsibilities.
Undoubtedly, the implementation has been deficient, and
not only do we continue to see how the responses and
solutions to the problem are insufficient, but also new
ones have appeared. For example, soccer teams decided
to assume part of their responsibility, paying fans for their
behavior, instead of investing in private security and
security facilities. As a result, this has led to clashes
between fans and a dynamic of blackmailing the clubs for
the particular motives of organized groups of fans. In
addition, fans have already planned violent acts in the
middle of matches and training sessions, leaving hundreds
injured and millions of pesos in material damages (Clavijo,
2023).
The dissemination of violent events occurring inside and outside stadiums has shaped the perception that "[...] going to these sports venues is
unsafe, as expressed by 69% of the general population and 73% of stadium neighbors." (National Consulting Center, 2014, p.86).
Safety and coexistence protocols
Objective: To promote a draft framework law or code
that collects, clarifies, harmonises, unifies, and structures
legislation related to safety, comfort, and coexistence in
football as a spectacle. (Ministry of the Interior, 2014, p.
82).
If anything is evident, it is that, after the 2009 law on
security and coexistence in soccer, politicians have not
lacked the will to regulate the complex situation in
stadiums. Quite the opposite has happened. In an effort
to have instruments to control and regulate this problem
that seems to be getting out of hand, numerous laws,
decrees, and protocols have emerged at national,
autonomous, and local levels. (Ministry of the Interior,
2014) If we add that the Colombian Football Federation
and Dimayor, two key players in the problem, are
governed by the provisions of an international body such
as FIFA, the result is a regulatory system with no binding
and effective power over the problem it is trying to
regulate.
Hence, the absence of a legal tool that unifies the
different legislations is a failure of the Plan. It has caused
a lack of security and coexistence protocols, resulting in
great confusion in institutions such as the national police
and the judicial branch and an increase in violent acts
inside stadiums. (Buitrago, 2019) Under this scenario,
fans know from their own experience that breaking chairs,
throwing things on the field of play, and threatening other
fans, for example, will not have a significant consequence
or punishment for their lives. In that case, the problem is
not the creation of laws and regulations, of which there
are already many, but their application. What is needed
instead is effective coordination between the sports
authorities and the police and judicial authorities of the
Colombian state.
Registration and identification mechanisms
Objective: Strengthen the conditions of safety, comfort,
and coexistence of those attending the soccer show by:
improving the physical and technological infrastructure of
sports venues (Ministry of the Interior, 2014, p. 102):
As exposed in the context, security conditions in stadiums
have had a further deterioration in recent months. Despite
the plans proposed in the Plan for implementing measures
to control and monitor stadium attendees, these have not
been performed properly. For example, in 2017, the
registration and carding of fans had a good start, but it
only remained an effort because its implementation was
never complete, and now it is not required to access the
stadiums. (Ramírez, 2023)
O c t 2023 Pg. 4
On the other hand, although pilots for access with
biometric identification to the Bogotá stadium were
carried out together with the National Police, this never
came into force or was replicated in the other cities of the
country. (López, 2023)
In addition to an absence of political will due to budgetary
issues, the objective of improving the physical and
technological infrastructure in the country's stadiums has
not been able to advance. As a result, it has made it
impossible to identify and punish violent individuals, in
addition to not being able to prevent the reoccurrence of
these actions.
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
Although the Ten-Year Plan was led by the Ministry of the
Interior, and we could analyze it as an effective process of
joint interdependence (Bekkers, Fenger, & Scholten,
2017) by having the active and satisfactory participation
of the different political and social stakeholders, the
implementation was deficient and today we not only
continue to see how the responses and solutions are
insufficient to the problem, but we also see how they have
generated new ones.
The creation of the Ministry of Equity and Equality is a
great opportunity to reorient public policy on violence in
stadiums and finally achieve results. Among the lessons
learned from the previous public policy, 2 can be
highlighted that should be considered in a new public
policy. First, it is important to change the implementation
approach to a top-down approach. Lack of leadership and
excessive independence of local authors, The new Ministry
should take the lead in supporting from the top with clear
budget and guidelines.
Second, the government tools to be used should be more
of a stick than a carrot. The previous policy had an excess
of pedagogical initiatives, but they did not really
encourage the different levels of actors.
On these general recommendations, additional ones are
highlighted below:
• Ministry of Equality and Equity
leadership
Conjuncturally, there has been an opportunity to move
forward in the implementation of public policy around
violence in football. The new government in its
development plan for 2022- 2026, has created the
Ministry of Equality and Equity, which will be directed by
the vice president herself, and has already some national
budget intended. Within the ministry, it was created a
vice-ministry for youth, which will also have an area
dedicated to social fans, that will have the responsibility to
improve the violence inside stadiums. The objective has a
Budget of 7,4 million euros for the first year, which should
be used to make an evaluation of the Ten-year Plan of
Security, Comfort, and Coexistence in football for 2014-
2024. Based on this, there is a possibility to replicate
Good practices in diagnosis, participation, and interaction
from the interested parties.
• Unified systems of information and
identification of stadium attendees
Just like England – the world reference to end violence in
football stadiums – did before, is recommended to
implement systems of effective control to avoid the access
of violent people into the stadiums (Segura & Murzi,
2015). It is necessary that ticket sales are linked to the
ID, and, at the same time, this is connected to the
information systems from the National Registry and the
National Police. Additionally, biometric control is
fundamental in all stadiums around the country so that
the fans know which behavior will be monitored by
authorities. It has been proven that the use of cameras
reduces the incidents inside stadiums, without indirect
effects in the adjacent areas. (Segura & Murzi, 2015)
“In Colombia, there has to be a law just for security, an
operational technique law around security only. Within
security, there are a lot of topics, such as responsibilities,
what does a stadium has to have, how is it supposed to be
like, which kind of adjustments does it have to have, what
time does it open, how many fences has it, how many
cups are necessary, hove many logistics people does it
need, etc,”, the source specified. The source also added
that it is necessary to have an “operational technique law
around security operation. The programs around
organized fan groups exist, they are okay, but you must
do it another way, you can’t introduce a security law.
Why? Because the 1270 law from 2009 has this problem,
it refers to social topics and not to security and security
operations. It doesn’t even have a regulatory decree.”
These sanctions have a less generic character, they are
applied specifically to an individual or a group that has
committed an infraction.
O c t 2023 Pg. 5
The fans agree on this tenet, because a relatively small
group of fans is responsible for a huge number of
incidents and a bad image about football.
• Fan coaching processes
It is necessary that the public policy in Colombia adopts
international standards recognized in fan coaching
processes. For example, the protocol for racism from the
FIFA, is recognized around the world, and its three phases
have been used successfully in different countries.
(Fédération Internationale de Football Association,
2019).This way, not only it will be possible to teach fans
about the importance of good behavior during the
matches, but also to measure the consequences of their
bad actions inside stadiums. For this, I would recommend
the football clubs and the Dimayor to be the ones that
lead the socialization and implementation of this initiatives
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