By Penelope Galliou

“The punishment of his murderers Renti and the eradication of violence are now a matter of honor for the State and society. A sacred challenge in memory of George to which we will answer together. With power, justice and consistency”. With this condolence post, for the loss of the police officer Giorgos Lyggeridis in the line of duty from the murderous attack he received, Kyriakos Mitsotakis sent again, in the clearest way, the zero tolerance of the government towards fan violence and any form of violence.

From the first moment of the tragic events that took place in Rentis, fan violence automatically came back to the fore as one of the big bets that the government is expected to win in the near future, without discounts and delays.

In this context, the universal demand for stadiums to become places of sporting competition and harmonious meeting of those who love sports has become clear and in this light the government has already drawn up a comprehensive plan – as the Prime Minister announced with his latest weekly post – with seven key interventions. Includes stadium cameras, instant registration, one Club per badge, e-ticketing with ID verification. “But also one more important intervention: the ability of the state to intervene instantly, with an automated framework of administrative penalties, whenever incidents such as throwing firecrackers or lighting flares in stadiums are detected, that is, objective events, which will now attract automated penalties for holding games behind closed doors ” noted the prime minister, adding that “It is also important that the relevant investigation has been upgraded, with the Prosecutor’s Office now investigating at the highest level the possible connection between the violence in the stadiums and the activity of criminal organizations”.

The mix of measures being promoted by the government to tackle fan violence and combat it holistically and directly includes among others:

-Only one Club per team crest.

– Supervision of PAE in the Club.

– Mandatory establishment of a Panhellenic Federation of Fan Clubs within six months and its participation in the international Confederations of Fan Clubs.

– Immediate operation of the Electronic Register of Members of Fan Clubs.

-Compulsory full operation of the electronic supervision system for the Super League and Basket League stadiums.

-Certification of its good operation by the Greek Police two days before each match.

-If the system is malfunctioning, the match will be held behind closed doors.

-If the system malfunctions on the day of the match, the next match will be held behind closed doors.

-Modern ticket holder identification system, in collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Governance.

-Automatic process, without the need for a check by a natural person, through an application on the ticket holder’s mobile phone.

-Users of the application will be natural persons who issue a ticket for themselves and their minor children.

“Our goal is to limit and institutionally shield the stadiums in order to change their image,” commented a government official. According to what was announced by the Deputy Minister of Sports, Yannis Vroutsis, in addition to the existing legislative framework, which concerns the criminal part, there will also be administrative sanctions, thus putting the PAEs in the game. In fact, as Mr. Vroutsis said, he will also make those participants because the state wants them close to him “so that they can intercept the criminal elements themselves. It is a shame that the PAE themselves reproduce antibodies, in order to guard their body and improve their product so that more people come to the stadiums,” he noted.