Raises the bar for the genre., 28 Feb 2003

The basic premise of Eurotrashed is to show that whilst we still have a hooligan problem here in England, things abroad are often much worse. And when our supporters travel with either their club or the national side, they are occassionally placed in situations which are nothing short of dangerous.

It does this very well indeed and the strength of the book is the way it explains how and why hooliganism developed across Europe. From the history of England's travelling hooligan element to the murders of two Leeds United fans in Turkey, the amount of detail included is quite simply astonishing. A particular favourite line involved a British official who dismissed injuries to a number of Liverpool fans with the phrase 'it's a bit harsh to say they were stabbed, the skin was barely even punctured!' Incredible.

The number of books dealing with the culture of hooliganism shows how fascinated people are by it but little if anything is known about what goes on abroad. With this book, not only does Brimson fill that void, he also raises the quality of writing by some considerable margin.

 Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)

Thought provoking, 15 Feb 2004

Of specific interest to most will be the early chapters on the history of English hooliganism and the later examination of the murders of Chris Loftus and Kevin Speight in Turkey. I would actually recomend this chapter to every English football fan because it is quite simply astonishing. Interestingly, many of the points made here were highlighted in the recent coronors report into the tragedy which shows Brimson was well ahead of the game in this book.

The one negative commment is that I feel some of the chapters could have handled a more in-depth examination (Germany being the most obvious example) but this should nevertheless be a valuable addition to anyone's collection.

 Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)

The best of all the hooligan books, 10 May 2003

In his previous book Barmy Army, he examined what has been going on in England and this is the logical follow-up; the issue of Europe. And it is, quite simply, fantastic. The detail in the research is staggering and for anyone wanting to learn about the darker side of the European game, this book is a must.

An examination of South American football surely beckons.

 Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)