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Hello. Can Atletico Madrid solve their ultras problem?
Ultra Problem: Who are Atletico fan group that stopped Madrid derby?
Sunday’s Madrid derby between Atletico and Real should have been a rousing event. What transpired was a depressing night. Yesterday’s TAFC covered the poisonous nature of their 1-1 draw, a match suspended for 20 minutes after missiles were thrown at Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
In any circumstances, crowd trouble stopping play would have made headlines in Spain and beyond. By no means is La Liga the sole domain of unsavoury incidents, but what happened at Atletico’s Estadio Metropolitano was all too predictable and symptomatic of wider issues that Atletico must face up to.
Within the club’s support are the Frente Atletico, a radical group of ‘ultras’ — fans marked out for their choreographed and fanatical support. The faction has existed since 1982 and, over the years, become increasingly right-wing. Last December, four members of the Frente were charged after an effigy dressed to resemble Vinicius Junior was hung from a bridge near Real’s training ground. That criminal case is pending.
There have been other nasty incidents, too, including the death of two rival supporters in clashes with Atletico fans. A Nazi swastika and a far-right banner were seen in the stands in 2018. Derbies between Atletico and Real have generated racist abuse of Vinicius Jr. In short, Sunday’s flashpoint did not occur out of the blue.
Dermot Corrigan has written about the relationship between the Frente and Atletico and the effect the group is having on Atletico’s reputation. The ultras are not tolerated in the way they once were — but Atletico have fallen a long way short of stamping out their malign influence.
What do other fans think of them?
The Frente were once classed as an official supporters group. Atletico, however, removed that status around a decade ago in response to concerns about them. The Frente are fairly opaque. Nobody knows how big the group’s membership is or how many of them regularly attend games.
Other sections of Atletico’s crowd seem to have little time for them. While the ultras behind Courtois’ goal chanted after play was suspended on Sunday, supporters elsewhere in the stadium jeered them. The situation is unedifying. As one fan told Dermot: “Ninety-nine per cent of the people in that stand are normal. Those who dominate are the brainless ones.”
There’s history with Courtois, a former Atletico player who crossed the divide to their bitter rivals. Some at Atletico think he has disrespected them. Diego Simeone, who made an attempt to calm the home end down (above), accused him of celebrating Real’s goal in a provocative manner. Chants of “Courtois die” were heard just before Real scored.
Eliminating the Frente is far from easy, but could Atletico try harder?
Will there be a punishment?
Atletico could be handed a full or partial stadium closure. The club have already banned one fan for life. They are promising to ban others and outlaw the use of face coverings in their ground.
Atletico said their “firm conviction to eradicate any form of violence” was “unquestionable”, but their handling of the Frente will be closely monitored. The problem is not new and Sunday must be a line in the sand.
News round-up
City of millions, one club: London has seven sides — why are there so few in Paris?
London is almost unique in world football for the sheer number of clubs that inhabit the city. Seven of the Premier League’s 20 teams are based in the capital. Plenty more feature in England’s lower divisions.
In France, the picture is a complete contrast. Despite a population of millions, Paris has only one major side: Paris Saint-Germain. They might be a monolith fuelled by Qatari wealth these days, but they did not exist until 1970 and over the past few decades, no other Parisian club has broken into Ligue 1 or created a meaningful city rivalry.
It was not always this way. In the 1930s, when France’s top division was founded, four teams from Paris made up the numbers. It might be that things are about to change again. Paris FC and Red Star compete in Ligue 2, with Paris FC top of the standings. So tonight, it’s Arsenal versus PSG in the Champions League, but maybe somewhere down the line, another Parisian contender will emerge.
📲 Our Champions League live blog has all the latest on today’s matches, including news that PSG’s Ousmane Dembele has been dropped for disciplinary reasons — although head coach Luis Enrique is refusing to spell out those reasons.
Show Viz
TV rights deals make the earth turn. The revenue generated by broadcast agreements is what clubs and associations badly want a piece of. Why do you think FIFA is battling so hard to lure networks into televising next year’s Club World Cup?
In the Premier League last season, a paltry 3.8 per cent of Bournemouth’s annual turnover came from alternative matchday revenue. There’s quite a lot of fluctuation in the division — Arsenal, for example, accrued 22 per cent of their revenue from matchdays — but the era when gate receipts were king is far behind us.
That said, matchday income still matters and teams are forever thinking of ways to swell their coffers. They’re forever tempted to charge more for seats, too — and as Matt Woosnam details here, the Premier League has seen some hefty rises in season ticket and general admission costs.
On Wednesday, Aston Villa host Bayern Munich in the Champions League. For any Villa fan who doesn’t have a season ticket, the price of entrance is a minimum of £85. Part of you thinks the lucrative flow of TV readies could have made games cheaper to attend. The cynical part of you knows pigs don’t fly.
Around The Athletic FC
Catch a match (Times ET/UK)
Champions League: Stuttgart vs Sparta Prague, 12.45pm/5.45pm — Paramount+/TNT Sports; Arsenal vs Paris Saint-Germain, 3pm/8pm — Paramount+/Amazon Prime; Barcelona vs Young Boys, 3pm/8pm — Paramount+, Fubo/TNT Sports; Bayer Leverkusen vs AC Milan, 3pm/8pm — Paramount+/TNT Sports; Borussia Dortmund vs Celtic, 3pm/8pm — CBS, Paramount+, Fubo/TNT Sports; Inter Milan vs Red Star Belgrade, 3pm/8pm — Paramount+/TNT Sports; Slovan Bratislava vs Manchester City, 3pm/8pm — Paramount+/TNT Sports
Carabao Cup: Newcastle United vs AFC Wimbledon, 2.45pm/7.45pm — Paramount+/Sky Sports
And Finally… Don’t Look Now
Round two of Champions League fixtures includes Bayer Leverkusen against AC Milan this evening — and Leverkusen’s presence gives TAFC a gratuitous reason to GIF our favourite moment from the first set of games.
If you missed it, check out this no-look pass from striker Victor Boniface two weeks ago, a supremely disguised secondary assist that set up one of their goals in a 4-0 hammering of Feyenoord. I’d have paid the entrance fee just to see that.
(Top photo: Oscar del Pozo/AFP)