In response to several recent incidents of racism in European stadia, FIFA has announced strict new regulations punishing teams whose fans are practicing such behavior. Yesterday, FIFA prez Sepp Blatter announced that these punishments, including a three point penalty for teams with racist fans, will apply at the World Cup.
I'm skeptical about this for two reasons. First off, although this is a legitimate problem, the fan dynamics of the World Cup (all matches in a neutral nation, limited ticket allocations, and the expense of those tickets) make it less likely that incidents of racism will occur. I can't recall any incidents of fan racism at the Wolrd Cup finals (although the qualification tournament is another matter.)
Secondly, as the Guardian points out, there are a number of flaws in this scheme. Three point penalties are fine during the group phase, but what about the knockout phase? And what's stopping some cunning fans from gaming the system and making racist noises and comments and members of their own team, hoping their opponents will be penalized?
Perhaps more importantly, why should a national team, playing in a neutral venue, be responsible for the behavior of the people in the crowd? A club is able to administer their own stadium and is thus able to take measures against racism. But how will a national federation in Germany be able to do that if they are playing a one off match in a foreign stadium?
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