English football authorities need ‘urgent meeting’ to discuss fan disorder

The head of football policing in the UK has called for an urgent meeting with the English game’s authorities to discuss the increase in disorder at matches.

The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) released figures last week which showed a 36 per cent rise in disorder in the first half of this season compared to the same period in the 2019-20 campaign.

That was before a further spate of incidents last weekend, including the throwing of objects at Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger during Sunday’s match against Tottenham, and Everton fans throwing plastic bottles at Aston Villa’s Lucas Digne and Matty Cash the day before.

Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s football policing lead, said on Thursday he had written to the Premier League, the Football Association and the English Football League on Monday “asking for an urgent meeting to discuss the issues we are seeing with disorder”.

“When we receive all their responses a meeting date will be set,” he said.

It is understood a response has been received from the EFL.

Chief Constable Roberts confirmed there was a meeting with the Premier League on Friday to discuss match scheduling but this was “pre-planned” – it is understood the meeting was scheduled late last year.

He said: “(The meeting on Friday) is relevant to one element of the issue but not the broader discussion that we urgently need.”

The UKFPU found there were 759 reported incidents of disorder in the first half of the 2021-22 season, throughout which stadiums in England have been able to operate without capacity limits due to the easing of coronavirus restrictions.

That compares to 560 in the first half of the 2019-20 season, before the pandemic took hold.

In 2019-20, 34 per cent of games