(10-14-2017, 11:54 AM)JaguarsWoman Wrote:

(10-14-2017, 01:38 AM)DarloJAG84 Wrote: Well, because historically the fans have needed to be separated due to violence. I think they believe that keeping them segregated will cut down on violence but I think it makes it worse as segregation builds tension. It mainly happens outside of the stadium these days but there are always cases of people from the visiting team attempting to buy tickets in the home teams sections. That's why a lot of teams these days take your postal (zip) code when you purchase tickets if it's a rivalry game (most lower league soccer fans support their local team, so it's easier to see which section they should be purchasing tickets in)..

The zip code segregation idea may have made sense at the time, but it is completely useless in a world where people live in one state/province for years, then move to another that's home to a different team in the same league. They should catch up with the American way of having certain sections for away team fans (watch any college game and they are easy to pick out unless both teams wear the same colors).

We have home and away sections. Fans from either team are not allowed to cross over.

Say, for instance, Portsmouth play Southampton (this is a huge violent rivalry), fans from the visiting team are only allowed to get to the stadium via Official Club Transport (coaches laid on by the club but paid for by the supporters at an additional cost to the matchday ticket).. anyone with a PO (Portsmouth postcode) would not be allowed to buy a ticket for the Southampton sections and anyone with an SO postcode (Southampton) would not be allowed to purchase tickets for the Portsmouth sections. It gets complicated sometimes because Southampton and Portsmouth are only 19 miles apart and some PO postcodes are closer to Southampton and SO closer to Portsmouth geographically. In these circumstances they need to prove their allegiance to the team in which they follow (usually by purchasing direct from their own stadium box office rather than online).

This has cut down on a lot of violence in and around the stadium but, believe it or not, a lot of the violence is pre-arranged between rival sets of supporters at a meet point in advance.

This kind of activity is rarer than it used to be but, unfortunately, it still happens more that we'd like.

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