The Football Spectators Act 1989 is an Act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

enacted during the premiership of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

. Its provisions apply primarily to

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

matches played in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. Amendments to the Act were made through the

Football (Offences and Disorder) Act 1999 Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ca ...

, the

Football (Disorder) Act 2000 The Football (Disorder) Act 2000 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom enacted during the premiership of Tony Blair. It served as an amendment to the Football Spectators Act 1989, and strengthened football banning orders (FBOs), a ci ...

, and the

Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 (c. 38) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Origin The United Kingdom Government published a paper "Drinking Responsibly - The Government's Proposals" in 2005 setting out their proposals for ...

, the last of which repealed large sections of the Football Spectators Act 1989. The aim of the Act was to identify individuals known to cause disorder at and around football matches, whether in the UK itself or abroad. It was originally intended that fans would have to give a passport number to become part of a membership scheme and receive an identity card so as to go to away matches, but eventually this was not enacted.

Football-related offences

The Act and its amendments identifies a number of specific offences related to fan behaviour, including the throwing of objects onto the field or into the crowd; racist or obscene chanting at a match; violence against persons or property, including threats and endangerment of any person's life; a variety of alcohol-related offences; and the bringing or being in possession of fireworks into or at a designated sporting event. However, almost any criminal offence connected with a game that occurs within 24 hours on either end of a football match can also be designated as a football-related offence. The Act also introduced the football banning order (FBO), under which a magistrate can ban an individual from attending football matches (whether either domestic or foreign) for a period of 2–10 years and can also impose additional restrictions. FBOs are usually imposed by the court after someone has been convicted of a football-related offence, although they can be imposed even on individuals charged but acquitted of such offences, or in response to police representations that the FBO would prevent football-related violence or disorder.

References

External links

* History of football in England United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1989 Association football law 1989–90 in English football Football in the United Kingdom {{UK-statute-stub