Motorway football violence sparks calls for crackdown on hooligans

Violent clash on the A1 motorway among Ultras.

 Arezzo – Authorities are considering new measures to prevent football violence after clashes erupted on the A1 motorway between rival AS Roma and Napoli fans.

 At least eight people have been arrested and over 200 were identified after the violent events that took place over the weekend. According to the investigators in charge of taking care of the case, the Ultras planned the event beforehand, giving the government more reason to act and discuss whether implementation of new sport-related regulations is needed.

 The Ultras are a type of association of football fans known worldwide for having a long history of violence – they are the extremists in football. Authorities were already supervising the area as they knew that the fanatic fans would have been crossing the same path on the A1 motorway - the ones supporting Napoli were directed to Liguria whereas AS Roma fans were going to Milan, meaning they would have met each other in the Arezzo area. 

 The National Observatory on Sport Manifestation was aware of the risk, yet it still allowed the trip to the stadiums by the Ultras only by reinforcing the security measures along the path. 

 As experts are reconstructing the scene to understand whether it was all planned beforehand or if it was just a spontaneous disaster, but it seems multiple cars were spotted in the days prior to the event that were used to notify the other members of the Ultras that their ‘enemies’ are approaching. A large number of messages have also been retrieved that reinforce such theory.  

 Countless fans were brutally hurt, lots of reports of broken bones, stabs, and other cruel acts were reported to the police – many had to be taken to the emergency room to treat their condition. 

 The government is currently trying to get a proper reconstruction of the events by using the footage collected around the scene to strengthen the regulations and guarantee important changes in the new measures that will soon be proposed. Thanks to the tapes police were able to arrest the culprits who fled the area before the officers arrived. 

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Ultras Napoli wearing the same color in order to be easier to recognize.

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