Footballers above the law?

Always wondered why police who are at football grounds never arrest footballers who assault other players. Seen so many times a player headbutt or punch a player or spit into the crowd at the fans and the police do nothing.

Are you immune from arrest if you are a professional football player playing at a ground? Obviously the law does not say that but the police seem to be doing that.

Of course it will be different in a sporting arena, than it is on the streets.

Stella wrote:Of course it will be different in a sporting arena, than it is on the streets.

Should it be? Should we allows Suarez to bite a someone and get away with it because he is playing a sport in an arena?

What about boxing as well then? Surely that's ABH in the eyes of the law?

Hero wrote:What about boxing as well then? Surely that's ABH in the eyes of the law?

Boxing is an odd one but there has been case law on the matter and the judges have stated that it is a sport with strict laws and thus it is not an assault.

And hockey.

Slamming opponents into the boards, hitting in the face with sticks and fighting until one or both participants can't fight any longer. Each thing is illegal in hockey although there's some leeway on the first one.

It's sport. Certain things are part of the deal you sign up for when you become a player.

CFCNick wrote:And hockey.

Slamming opponents into the boards, hitting in the face with sticks and fighting until one or both participants can't fight any longer. Each thing is illegal in hockey although there's some leeway on the first one.

It's sport. Certain things are part of the deal you sign up for when you become a player.

It has to be within the rules of the sport to be legal, eg slide tacking a player but missing the ball and breaking the players leg is not GBH because slide tackles are within the rules just the player did it badly. Punching a player in the face is not within the rules of football and thus is an assault.

Same principles apply to Hockey, you can tackle them. If it is not within the rules to fight then it should be an assault.

And it has been considered assault in the past, Duncan Ferguson for example who was charged and sentenced for a headbutt during a game.

Most things that actually happen during matches wouldn't have action take on them if they happened in the street, a lot of "punches" and "headbutts" are barely there, see a lot of Joey Barton's indiscretions in football matches.

The bite one is odd.