Euro 2016 is in danger of being remembered for what happened off, rather than on, the pitch

The French authorities were quick to jail six England fans but caught none of the Russian thugs who, remarkably, managed to leave Marseille

Enland fans seated at a cafe terrace, wave to a passing police patrol in Lille (Reuters)

England's performance so far at the Euro 2016 football championships has inevitably overshadowed by violence in Marseilles. The reputation of England supporters went before them: there were ugly scenes in the same city when England played Tunisia there in the 1998 World Cup. So England fans were bound to be blamed for the latest hooliganism.

A tiny minority of England supporters may have been involved in fighting in the streets in the days before Saturday’s match against Russia. But there is strong evidence that they were provoked by a 150-strong organised gang of Russians who were determined to cause trouble. It seems that some local louts were happy to join in the mayhem. Inside the stadium, Russians were undoubtedly the instigators as they invaded a section occupied by England supporters at the end of the game.

Uefa's threat to kick England and Russia out of the tournament if there is further violence is understandable, perhaps the only way to send a message to supporters who might become embroiled in trouble.

But, based on what has happened so far, it would be an extreme and unjustified punishment for the England team and the genuine fans who make up the overwhelming majority of those who have travelled to France.

These days, the English may be the victims rather than the perpetrators of football violence, as their past misbehaviour counts against them in the court of world opinion.

The French authorities’ handling of events in Marseille has rightly been criticised. The segregation of fans at Saturday's match and the stewarding was woeful and the scheduling of games is highly questionable. There is a serious risk of more violence as England and Russia fans gather in Lens and nearby Lille respectively for their team's next game.

The French authorities were quick to jail six England fans but caught none of the Russian thugs who, remarkably, managed to leave Marseille. The French might have reaped the benefit of closer collaboration with English police, who have been forced by past events to develop genuine expertise in tackling the thugs who attach themselves to football. Hopefully they will now take advice from their English counterparts in order to reduce the chances of more trouble.

After the terrorist attacks in Paris last November, the French authorities are understandably concerned about preventing a repeat during Euro 2016. This may have led to a zero tolerance approach to the sort of exuberance displayed by fans every weekend during the English football season, to which police have sensibly learned to develop a softly, softly, rather than heavy-handed, approach.

It is a pity that a few mindless thugs did not let the 90,000 French security forces deployed get on with the job of preventing a terrorist outrage. Let us hope that England's Euro 2016 can still be remembered for what happened on the pitch rather than off it.