Dedicated to PAOK FC supporters all over the world.

Abstract

This essay aims to unveil the opinions, thoughts and perceptions of Greek fans as far as the causes of violent incidents in the Greek football league are concerned. In the first part of this research project some theoretical considerations about determinants of violence, crime and delinquency in general and in sports are being analysed. For the purposes of this study I contacted a small-scale case study research project with 300 PAOK Thessaloniki FC supporters; in an attempt to determine the factors that contribute to the genesis or escalation of violence in the Greek football league. The research findings of this project have been
This essay will accentuate the voice of the Greeks fans in order to analyse the causes of violence in sports. Supporters will “have their say” on what they acknowledge or recognise as factors that contribute to the escalation of violent outbreaks in football matches.

2. Theoretical considerations and literature review

2.1 Violence in sports: Definitions and theoretical considerations

We can define violence in sports as behavior or action which can cause damage or injury and usually occurs outside of the rules and the competitive objectives of the sport (Terry and Jackson, 1985 page 2). Leonard (1988 page 165) is of the opinion that aggression in sports could be categorized into two forms. Instrumental aggression is non-emotional and task-oriented. Reactive aggression has an underlying emotional component, with harm as its goal. Violence is an outcome of reactive aggression. In this chapter I will analyze theories and theoretical schemes about violent and delinquent behaviour in an attempt to present some theoretical considerations about violence in general and in sports as well. A first distinction as far as violent behaviour is concerned can be made between theories that aim to unveil the causes of violence and those that do not accept or are not interested in them. The theories that seek for the causes of violence can be analyzed in the following sub-categories. The first category, are those that refer