Football, beer, and the behavior of fans

According to recent alcohol statistics in Europe, consumption amounts to an average of 11 liters of pure alcohol per adult each year 11 (this equals 1,400 beer cans per person yearly) But in the 1970s, these were even higher (15 liters per adult each year).

The link between alcohol and soccer (football) is obvious from an experiment done on Aston Villa supporters present at a final for the European Cup against the German team Bayern Munich on Rotterdam's Feyenoord Stadium. The supporters of the English team received free non-alcoholic beer, but although it didn’t contain alcohol, they all showed drunken behavior.

While most people noted this 'con' with surprise and interest the seemingly 'drunken' behavior of Aston Villa fans, others are more undecided about the level to which the results of alcohol consumption are felt at a psychological level.

The Scottish seem to think that total bans on alcohol at football games aren’t the way to go, but another option which needs exploring is modifying the alcohol-related behavior among football fans, and English ones in particular.

Although alcohol is a key element of anti-social behavior, the replacement of drinking, imposed by the bans that will likely appear on alcohol consumption, will tend to amplify the probability of aggression equally before and after the football games.

The latest recommendation on this subject is that with the help of the European authorities involved, a ban on alcohol should be put in place for all national matches of the England team, that take place outside of the United Kingdom.