Earlier this week, the Swedish Professional Football Leagues outlined how the clubs in Allsvenskan and Superettan will address security during the 2024 season. Today, a follow-up meeting was held with the Government and other stakeholders to provide a comprehensive status update on the matter.
“It was a good meeting where we had the opportunity to extensively present our approach and planned measures to the ministers,” says Johan Lindvall, Secretary-General of the Swedish Professional Football Leagues.
This meeting marked the third gathering between the parties focused on football match security. Representing the government was Minister of Sports Jakob Forssmed (Kd). Swedish Professional Football Leagues was represented by Chairman Simon Åström, Secretary-General Johan Lindvall, Security Manager Per Eliasson, and Communications Manager Robert Johansson. Other participants included the Swedish Football Association’s (SvFF) Chairman Fredrik Reinfeldt and Secretary-General Andrea Möllerberg, along with representatives from the Swedish Sports Confederation (RF), the Swedish Football Supporters Union (SFSU), Stockholm Live, and the police and prosecution authorities.
“I believe we have achieved good collaboration between politics and all football stakeholders. We see this as a societal issue that spills over into football, where we need support and collaboration between all parties to reduce the number of disturbances,” Johan Lindvall states.
All participants continue to believe that the exclusion strategy is the right approach, meaning individuals who commit crimes must be identified, prosecuted, and suspended. During the meeting, all stakeholders provided their status reports ahead of the Allsvenskan and Superettan season kick-off during Easter week.
“At Svensk Elitfotboll, we presented our setup and proposed measures for how we proceed with security work in Allsvenskan and Superettan. This includes how we handle matches where pyrotechnics are ignited, bangers are set off, or dangerous objects are thrown, as well as how we can and should prevent this more effectively than before,” says Per Eliasson, Security Manager at Svensk Elitfotboll.
“We hope that all stakeholders take responsibility in this matter and assist in making our events safe and welcoming, while still maintaining the wonderful atmosphere and the festive spirit that we know Swedish football often delivers,” concludes Johan Lindvall.
The joint meetings between the parties will continue throughout the spring. Allsvenskan and Superettan kick off on Easter Saturday, March 30th.
