Russian Euro 2016 hooligans now fighting in Putin’s war on Ukraine
Russian hooligans from the same groups who fought England fans at Euro 2016 are reportedly participating in Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. Russian supporters clashed with sections of those following the Three Lions before and after their 1-1 group stage draw.
Football took a back seat nine years ago when England faced Russia in Marseille. Hooligans were accused of launching savage, coordinated attacks around the city, which left dozens injured and one man paralyzed for life.
Marseille’s chief prosecutor claimed a group of 150 Russians were behind the majority of the violence, bringing with them metal bars and other fighting equipment. They were described as "hyper-violent." Reports now suggest that a handful of these hooligans are fighting on the front lines for Russian President Putin in his war on Ukraine.
According to French outlet L’Equipe, the same hooligans who launched attacks on the English are now armed with rifles in Ukraine. They single out the Espanola, an irregular military formation led by Commander Mikhail Tourkanov, whose body is tattooed with swastikas.
"The fact that they are football fans, hooligans, I turn that into a huge asset," he said. "Because the people who join us come with a certain mindset, after the pitches, after the fights in the cities, in the stadiums, etc. By using that spirit, it becomes explosive."
The report claims that this battalion in particular has members who were part of the groups responsible for the violence in Marseille, and other individuals involved in the attacks could be fighting elsewhere on the front lines.
A former Russian footballer is also a member of Espanola, which was formed by radical fans of football clubs including CSKA Moscow, Spartak Moscow, Zenit, and Orel.
Andrei Solomatin, a defensive player who appeared at the 2002 World Cup, spent most of his career in his home country, primarily for Lokomotiv Moscow. In 2023, he announced he would be joining Espanola.
"We footballers are used to training every day. Here, it’s the same," he said. Many of the unit’s members hold far-right views, with another of their denominations, ’88th Brigade’, being an explicit neo-Nazi reference, according to Ukrainian intelligence.
Eye-witness accounts from the incidents in Marseille in 2016 depict barbaric attacks, and one man, Ian Allsop, a builder from Luton, recalled his experiences in the city’s Old Port, where he was struck with a wooden bat.
"About 300 Russians came out of nowhere in the afternoon. They just walked straight through all the England fans who were standing about singing," he said nine years ago.
"They just started hitting anyone they could. One went to punch me, and I ducked. But then someone took a wooden bat to my arm. It is killing me today. The Russians were completely organized. They wore gum shields, some had England shirts on to mix in.
"They were there to do the English. They were thick-set, stocky guys. People were getting bottles smashed on their heads, baseball bats smashed into them. Loads of people were hurt."
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