Euro 2016: Police warning to fans as England opener vs Russia poses one of biggest security risks at tournament

Group match in Marseilles on Saturday night identified as potential trouble hot-spot

French police seperate local youths from England supporters in St Etienne during the 1998 World Cup finals in France. Warnings have been given ahead of England's opening Euro 2016 game, against Russia on Saturday (Getty)

England’s opening game of the European Championship creates one of the biggest security challenges of the tournament’s group stage for French police, who have a low tolerance of alcohol-fuelled anti-social behaviour and should not be provoked, British officers have warned.

Police based in the United Kingdom have felt since the draw for the championship was made that the opening England fixture against Russia posed far more risk of violence than the all-Britain tie against Wales next week.

Hard-core Russian supporters are potentially the most violent of any nation in the competition and the match also falls within Ramadan, creating the prospect of larger than usual numbers of local French youths forming part of the social mix in the city, which was the scene of ugly fighting at the 1998 World Cup finals, when England played Tunisia at the same venue, again in their opening match.

But though the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has this week issued advice highlighting the potential terror threat at stadiums, fan zones, and transport hubs and urged vigilance, there are relatively thin numbers of British officers at the tournament.

Their own role is to act as ‘cultural interpreters’ on the ground – looking to head off British anti-social behaviour or criminality before local police, who will be less familiar with UK fans, get involved.


 England supporters are expected to travel in large numbers to France for this month's tournament (Getty)

Despite the numbers of officers France is having to commit to the security operation, fewer British officers have been invited to help police the championship than were requested 10 years ago at the World Cup hosted by Germany.

The British contingent there was a fraction of the 500,000 people from these shores expected to travel in the next six weeks.

The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) is reluctant to disclose its own policing numbers on the ground in France for operational reasons, but officers on the ground aim to act as a buffer between fans and local police as far as they can.

The capacity to limit clashes with local police was seen before the friendly in Turin in March 2015, when ‘spotters’ – as operational offices are known - prevented anti-social behaviour and drunkenness escalating into clashes with the local Carabinieri.


 Tunisia supporters hold flares during clashes with England fans in Marseilles at the 1998 World Cup finals (Getty)

The Carabinieri were instead persuaded that the scenes in several Turin bars were not going to turn violent and that the British officers could handle it. A potential serious incident was avoided.

The risk of clashes is always greater with overseas forces who are less familiar with the behaviour of the small percentage of problem British fans.

But Marseilles also creates potential for clashes between rival fans, since the Russian contingent are years behind England in the development of a civilised approach to watch football.

To some English fans, the hard core of Russians will seem a throwback to the 1970s in this country.

For the first time, UKFPU have also set up a dedicated London-based team of detectives to tackle violence, criminality or anti-social behaviour during the tournament.


 An England supporter is led away by French police after clashes in Marseilles during the 1998 World Cup finals (Getty)

The unit will use social media and CCTV images as an intelligence asset to launch their own investigations, rather than wait for their French counterparts to involve them.

Police intend to learn lessons from a racist attack by Chelsea fans on the Paris Metro in their attempts to deal with potential criminality.

The attack on commuter Souleymane Sylla in February last year was captured by a passer-by in footage which went viral and senior British officers anticipate the visibility of similar anti-social behaviour this summer provoking clamour here to apprehend the perpetrators.