Advertisement

Banned footie fan takes complaint to top court

Author thumbnail
Banned footie fan takes complaint to top court
Photo: DPA

Germany's Constitutional Court is set to consider the complaint of a football fan who was banned from all stadiums in the country on the basis of suspicion that he was likely to be violent.

Advertisement

Der Spiegel magazine reported that Stuttgart-based lawyer Rüdiger Zuck, who represents the FC Bayern Munich fan, is to take the case to the highest court in the country.

The fan was banned from visiting any football match from the regional league upwards for two years, purely on the assumption that be would be violent.

An appeal against the decision, arguing it was unfair, was rejected by a federal court, leaving the Constitutional Court as the last place to try to overturn the ban.

The man concerned was 16 years old when he was among around 60 fans held by police after rioting during a Bundesliga match between FC Bayern Munich and Duisburg.

He has always insisted he was only watching the rioting from afar, and there was never evidence of him having taken part in the violence and an investigation was dropped.

Despite this, MSV Duisburg issued the ban, which was supported by the court on the basis that he belonged to the group of fans considered ready to use violence.

This was considered to justify the assumption that he was moving in an environment which tended towards violence and that it could be expected that he would be involved in violent acts.

Zuck’s appeal to the Constitutional Court is being supported by the Fanrechtefonds, a football fan organisation which campaigns for supporters’ rights.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also