By Mark Baber
May 23 – Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law Tuesday legislation that increases the sanctions which can be applied to convicted hooligans at sports events. The so-called Fan Law will come into effect on January 19, 2014.
Under the new law, fines of 3-10,000 roubles ($90-310) or alternatively 160 hours of compulsory work, and stadium bans of six months to 3 years can be imposed for failure to follow the stadium rules of behaviour.
For those found guilty of hooliganism, especially if their actions lead to a stop in play, more severe punishments of up to 25,000 roubles ($775) and 15 days detention can be imposed as well as stadium bans from six months up to seven years for persistent offenders.
Further stipulations in the law include the requirement for police and sports federations to keep lists of violators, while stadium owners must install CCTV systems to identify troublemakers.
Hooligans who violate stadium bans may be arrested and fined up to 25,000 roubles.
Organisers and owners of sports facilities can be held accountable for violations of security at events with fines of up to 300,000 roubles ($71,000), or up to half a million if damage is caused to human health or property. They may also face a suspension of up to 90 days.
The driving force for the new measures, which despite Russia’s reputation for authoritarianism are still less harsh than those in many Western countries, have been the need to keep fans safe during the 2018 World Cup and also an incident in the Dinamo vs Zenit game in November last year in which a goalkeeper was injured.
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