Karīna Zalcmane

Subject of Thesis: Criminogenic Factors of Football Fans and Prevention: Latvian and Foreign Experience

Supervisor: Asoc. Prof. Aldis Lieljuksis

WHO?

"I am always open to new opportunities and welcome challenges! At secondary school, before I decided to study law, I was quite determined to enrol in the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Riga Technical University. In the early morning hours inching through traffic jams I headed to my private classes in physics. I have kept the habit of doing a lot and managing as much as possible. A day before giving birth to my daughter I passed an exam in criminology and on the day when she turned three months old – the qualification exam in criminal law.

In addition to law, I am a qualified dance teacher. In addition to working at leading law firms, such as Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, I continued to teach dance lessons. While acquiring my master’s degree at the University of Westminster in London, I decided to combine both these interests and study entertainment law which, at that time, was the only study programme of that type in the whole of Eurasia. I mastered sports law, IT law, contract and intellectual property law. I usually joke that we have sport, but no sports law in Latvia – the area lacks proper regulation. Having returned back home, I was determined to make a contribution to the development of sports law and criminology in Latvia. At that time, thinking about the nearest future, I saw myself holding a doctoral degree awarded by Riga Stradiņš University and passing knowledge on to the younger generation. Science is not as boring as many would tend to think – and I strengthen my confidence in this with every day that I devote to understanding the criminogenic behaviour of football hooligans."

WHAT?

"My promotion thesis is devoted to a topical phenomenon of the contemporary sports world – the offences and crimes committed by football hooligans. I try to understand why most incidents involving sports fans are attributable to individuals passionate about football. Why do they form groups which, because of their structure could be compared to criminal gangs? And why does a lack of understanding of this subculture frequently result in conflicts in stadiums or in their vicinity!"

RSU 3rd year doctoral student in Law Karina Zalcmane shares her conviction that: "Doctoral studies and an in-depth acquisition of a particular subject might result in a fundamental switch in perception and break down stereotypes both with regard to the studied matter and life in general."

WHY?

"During my postgraduate studies, the situation in Ukraine and the discourse on safety in Europe intensified. Football fans played an active role in many demonstrations, not only in political ones. The events surrounding the last football championship in France swept away any doubts I may have had on the necessity of my research. Although there are no national studies on this subject matter, in truth, notwithstanding that Latvian fans are more peaceful than for example Poles or Russians, quite a number of incidents have been registered also in Latvia.

The construction of the new national stadium will be launched in the nearest future. I was involved in the development of the technical project and in years to come we will have to face the challenge of welcoming thousands of organised football fans. General public and law enforcement bodies have to make the necessary arrangements to be ready for such games, considering that in most cases the majority of offences and violations committed by football fans take place outside the stadiums.

I have chosen the topic of my thesis not for the sake of proving that all football fans are hooligans and offenders, vice versa – I want to mark out the individuals who turn football into a bloody sport. Most football fans are peaceful lovers of the game."

HOW?

"I read a lot of scientific and contemporary literature. English football fans and police officers, for example, have written quite a number of books on how to become a true fan of the Manchester United football club or how to know that there will be a clash of fans before the game between Chelsea and Arsenal. Whereas on the other hand, as for myself, the most interesting part of my thesis deals with surveys and interviews with fans, representatives of football clubs, federations, foreign experts in sports law and law enforcement bodies."

CONCLUSIONS

"It is too early to draw any conclusions at the moment. The only thing I would like to underline is that doctoral studies and an in-depth acquisition of a particular subject might result in a fundamental switch in perception and break down stereotypes both with regard to the studied matter and life in general."