Lessons from the derby

“Grandpas smuggled firecrackers into baby carriages”

Once again, there were serious riots at the Vienna derby on Sunday.(Bild: GEPA)

Grandpas once smuggled firecrackers into their grandchildren's baby carriages at the indoor soccer spectacle in Vienna's Stadthalle. Organizer Heinz Palme introduced rigorous admission controls. As Deputy General Director of the International Center for Sports Security, the Styrian was later responsible for security concepts in sport for many years. At the Vienna derby, he feels the clubs lack the necessary consistency.

The sports manager says: "The clubs make sure that they have the best possible team, the best possible coach, the best possible sponsors and the best possible VIP catering, etc. But the greatest asset at a soccer match is safety. Therefore, the highest standards must also prevail here. When incidents like the one on Sunday occur, the security standard for such a high-risk game was not high enough and there was a lack of professionalism and consistency on the part of everyone involved. It's not the first time something like this has happened at a derby."

Heinz Palme (right), here with current FIFA Security Director Helmut Spahn, at the 2018 World Cup final in Moscow.(Bild: Heinz Palme)

Palme emphasizes: "No stadium visitor should be in danger of being injured or even killed. The clubs must face up to the problem without compromise." This starts with the security infrastructure. The sports manager, who was general coordinator of the organizing committee and head of protocol at the 2006 World Cup, says: "You need a highly trained security service that acts uncompromisingly, preferably a special task force. Of course that costs money. You have to rigorously check every single guest at the entrance, even if it takes a long time. Expensive body scanners would also be a sensible investment."

"People have insulted me because of the entry checks"
In this context, Palme recounts his experience as the organizer of the former indoor soccer spectacle in Vienna's Stadthalle: "We had far too many firecrackers in the hall in the first year. As a result, I ordered rigorous admission controls in the second year. People berated me for it, but we significantly reduced the problem and discovered that even grandfathers were smuggling firecrackers into the Stadthalle in their grandchildren's baby carriages."

The police intervened very late in the derby on Sunday.(Bild: APA/EDGAR SCHÜTZ)

Another crucial aspect of professional risk management is scenario planning and ongoing communication with all those involved: "You have to be wide awake until the end of a sporting event. It doesn't end with the final whistle. The derby gave the impression that the security forces were overwhelmed and the police intervened too late."

Lawyer surprised that they did not intervene earlier
In this context, lawyer Anton-Alexander Havlik, who was in the stadium, said: "There were already firecrackers flying from the Austria sector during the game, which were frighteningly loud. You couldn't ignore it. I was very surprised that they didn't intervene at this point and remove the troublemakers from the sector. That might have helped prevent everything escalating completely after the final whistle."

People who endanger others should be consistently banned from stadiums.(Bild: GEPA)

"Tackle the root of the problem"
The most important point for Palme, however, is that people who endanger others are weeded out. Palme comments: "You have to break everything down into mini puzzle pieces and tackle the problem at the root. England has shown the way. When it comes to stadium bans, I would also consider face scanners to be sensible. You have to invest in the existing technology."