December 16 – In something of a first, no doubt fuelled in part by the widespread alcohol ban, not a single British fan has been arrested at the World Cup in Qatar, according to the UK’s football policing lead.
“Traditionally we do have few arrests of our fans at World Cups, but to have zero isn’t something we have seen before,” Chief Constable Mark Roberts was quoted as saying.
“The behaviour of England and Wales out in Qatar was absolutely exemplary,”
“Throughout the home nations’ involvement in the tournament there were no arrests or incidents to report, which is a credit to all those who travelled.”
During the 2018 World Cup in Russia, only three arrests were made. Wales joining England in the tournament this time doubled the number of group-stage games played by British teams including a derby match, in which England beat Wales 3-0.
“I would also like to praise all the UK officers who travelled out to Qatar for the work they have done in helping to keep British nationals safe during the past four weeks,” Roberts said.
“It would be wrong to entirely attribute this excellent behaviour to the restrictions on alcohol in Qatar, but I do think it has helped to some degree.”
By contrast, there have been 531 football-related incidents in the UK during the World Cup.
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