interview
The new ARD podcast “Game Abandonment – Is Violence Ruining Amateur Football?” will be released on Thursday. In the interview, host Hubertus Koch talks about his research.
There were shocking scenes that took place in March 2024 in the district league B during the game between Bremer SV II and Bremen United. An amateur kicker kicked his opponent in the face while he was lying on the ground. Another hit his opponent in the head with a running start. Excesses of violence like this are not uncommon on sports fields. In the ARD podcast “Game Abandonment – Is Violence Ruining Amateur Football?” Hubertus Koch deals with the question of why such escalations occur in amateur football.
Mr. Koch, your podcast is called “Game abandonment – is violence destroying amateur football?” Is the situation on the country’s amateur courses really that bad?
If you ask the DFB, the situation is not that dramatic. The association boasts that the numbers are declining. But anyone who listens to football pitches, especially in urban areas, will learn frightening stories. Violence is common there and fairly normal. Sure, there are extreme examples such as fights and game abandonments. But insults, threats and fistfights are also almost part of everyday life.
New podcast on the topic of violence in amateur football
In the “Spielabbruch” podcast, hosts Hubertus Koch and Yousuf Mirzad tell the story of Ansar and Luca. Both have experienced violence in amateur football. Ansar was a victim. Luca has become a perpetrator himself. All four episodes are available in the ARD audio library.
External content from ARD Audiothek
Amateur football is a hobby. It should be fun for the players and spectators. Why is violence being used more and more frequently in the squares?
The majority continue to have fun. The romance of amateur football is unbroken. Many are turning away from hyper-capitalist professional sports, so viewership is growing. When people are asked, they often say: “Well, now people just pull out their cell phones more often. Then it’s faster on Tiktok and Instagram. But actually it’s always been that way.” Anyone can ask around in their own circle of friends and acquaintances. Many men between 15 and 65 have once played football in a club. They all tell pretty similar stories. Only today amateur filmmakers take it up in a completely different way. Perhaps the inhibition threshold for using extreme violence has also become lower.
One of the protagonists in your podcast is the young referee Ansar from Bremen, who was attacked on the sports field and ended up in the hospital. Is life becoming more and more dangerous for the referees on the amateur pitches because respect for them is becoming less and less?
Ansar’s greatest wish is that respect for referees is restored. The referees are primarily affected by frustration and violence. That’s what makes it so difficult to grasp. Many referees don’t even write down what really happened in the match reports. Simply because they are afraid.
How can violence on the amateur courses be countered? Do life sentences help for the perpetrators? Or does it need more Prevention work?
Everything is correct. And everything has to be done. People who obviously use violence can not only be punished and banned by the sports court, but can also be sanctioned within their own club. But prevention work is also important, for example through anti-violence training.
We also have to look at: Where does this violence come from? It often has to do with racism, with insults, with injustice. These build up and then break out. This is particularly the case with players from socially disadvantaged areas and with a migrant background. It takes more than campaigns hanging “No to Racism” banners.
Should parents still send their children to football? Or are these safer for other sports?
I would like to turn this question around: Many people have told us that it is primarily the parents who bring the heat from outside by insulting others and insulting the referee. Ansar, our referee, told us that he has already been attacked by parents. And Luca, who himself became a perpetrator on the football field, also reported that parents insulted him from the sidelines. People don’t understand that it’s not the World Cup, but that children and young people should just have fun.
You have already mentioned the DFB. In your opinion, is he not doing enough to combat violence in amateur football?
I find it difficult that the DFB is boasting about the falling numbers. After all, he knows that the collection of this payment is completely inadequate because the cases recorded do not reflect reality. In particular, racial insults are not mentioned at all. The referee is solely responsible for what he writes in the match report. And as already mentioned, a lot of things are not documented there at all.
The DFB points out that it offers further training and seminars or has a registration portal. However, a very large burden lies on the shoulders of the volunteers in the clubs. The youth trainers or youth leaders have to take care of going to further training themselves. In my opinion, the DFB cannot expect them to drive 200 kilometers on a vacation day to listen to a seminar. That is simply wrong. Instead, the DFB needs to approach the clubs more directly and visit them in their club homes.
More about the violence in Bremen amateur football:
This topic in the program:
Sportblitz, September 24, 2025, 6:06 p.m
