This if pretty disgusting. Being no fan of this sport, I do not follow the international games. Soccer, while the guys are cuter than many athletes, is a sport that would benefit from the removal of the position of goalie in order to liven up the scoring momentum.

But this is truly disgusting example of racist behavior from the low-life masses. Football (as they call it) is a game, right? I cannot believe the degree of reprehensible racist behavior and the violence the sport generates.

Check out this story from today's NYTimes.

Susan 

     
“Half a truth is often a great lie.”

Ben Franklin

The sport is not responsible for generating the behaviour of some of the fans.  How could it be?

The most loyal and hardcore fans are from working-class backgrounds and those attitudes are well ingrained in the people.  Even my beloved West Ham United has a history of singing anti-Jewish songs, though the signing of Isreali Yossi Benayoun (much loved by West Ham fans) prompted a lot of discussion about those songs.  In my time attending football matches I've never heard the infamous monkey noises aimed at black players in any English league game, though one might occasionally hear someone shout something like 'black bastard.'  We got some press scrutiny for shouting 'shoe bomber' at an opposing Egyptian player, though the media predictably overlooked the fact that it was because he had an uncanny resemblance to Richard Reid.  In 2004 I was watching the England vs. Turkey match and the whole pub sang 'I'd rather be a Paki than a Turk.'  It depends on where you go though.  In Glasgow the local matches are marked by the old Catholic vs. Protestant tensions, in Italy some teams are properly aligned to either fascist or communist parties.  It's just normal working class concerns amplified by the amount of people in one place and being on TV. 

It's nothing to do with football.  Football just happens to be where thousands of young men from certain localities wearing a blue shirt meet up with thousands of other young men wearing a red shirt, and the result is these sorts of things.

Hmmm, I have my own theory.  As you can well imagine I might. 

Susan 

     
“Half a truth is often a great lie.”

Ben Franklin

Nah, you're way off track. I'm not even sure which sick filth you're referring to...soccer??? German soccer fans???

I didn't say I have a solution. I only said I have a theory.

But in one sense, I agree, Andrew. If there were no soccer the same behaviors would manifest themselves around some other pasttime.

Meanwhile, I'll be interested to see what kind of reception this SOCCER FAN finds in Deutschland. 

Susan

     
“Half a truth is often a great lie.”

Ben Franklin

Yay!  He's coming!  Photo opportunities abound. 

 The popular West Ham song is 'We'll be running around Tottenham with our willies hanging out, singing 'I've got a foreskin, have you?'  Which doesn't sound as bad as yours, and it really isn't anti-Jewish, just an opportunity to take a pop at their local rivals Tottenham who are known as a Jewish club and are often referred to as The Yids (or Front Wheel Skids in Cockney rhyming slang).

There have been cases where some people have made a hissing gas noise at Tottenham fans, which is disgraceful.