Egypt football fans want justice before league resumed.

CAIRO: Egypt’s new head of the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) Gamal Allam has pledged to boost relations with the Ultras, hardcore football fans, after the association and the fans has continued to remain on edge since the February 1 Port Said violence that left at least 75 people dead.

He said that the EFA would look to build bridges between the Ultras after the country has seen ongoing scuffles involving the fans, supporters of President Mohamed Morsi and his opponents in recent weeks.

Allam was reported to have said the EFA had come to an understanding with the Ultras to achieve the football governing body’s goal of ensuring that next week’s expected lifting of an 8-month old ban on professional soccer imposed after the Port Said clashes is not thwarted by the Ultras who see the violence as part of the ongoing struggle facing Egypt, its former regime and Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood.

In February, following the violence in Port Said, thousands of fans, with the Ultras leading the way, took to the streets of downtown Cairo. They were attacked by the military and police forces, with tear gas flying in every direction, birdshot hitting the legs, faces and arms of the protesters. It was a defiant show of strength for the disillusioned fans who felt the security forces had stood by and allowed fans to attack one another – video emerged showing security forces standing idly in a tunnel as the violence persisted.

It was not the first time the Ultras took to the streets in protest and support for democratic change, but this time in was noticeably about football and security. The days of clashes in downtown Cairo led to the end of the domestic league and the unending debate over the role of football in Egyptian society.

On the walls of Mohamed Mahmoud Street and Mansour Street – the flashpoint of the battles in November and February, respectively – are graffiti remembering the “martyrs” who had been killed in Port Said.

Star Egyptian forward Mohamed Abu Treika – arguably Egypt’s most favored and popular player – was a huge supporter of the revolution, inspiring thousands of fans to take to the streets.

Mahmoud Shenawy, one of the leaders of the February demonstrations, said that the Ultras are “fed up with the current situation.” While he says they do not want to see a return to the violent days late last year and early this year, he argued that the return of the Egyptian league will be instrumental in giving Egyptians something to escape to, and removal of what he called the “Mubarak-era football policies.”

Many of the top officials at the clubs around the country had links with the former regime and that led to much tension between fans and the clubs following the January 2011 uprising. In many ways, the Port Said clashes were a direct result of this, said one football reporter with a major Arabic daily.

“We saw the former regime really take an interest in football following the uprising because they saw it as a way to maintain their ties with power and money,” the reporter said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to his position and contacts with clubs.

“Still today, we see a lot of money within Egyptian football from the era of Mubarak and many of the officials are still the same. This has frustrated fans, understandably, because they were at the frontlines of protests many times,” he said.

While Egypt’s financial earnings are largely secret, the EFA had been known to have links with the Mubarak family, notably Alaa Mubarak, one of Mubarak’s sons, who had helped finance Egyptian football clubs, using what many believe was “corrupt money” acquired from his position as the president’s son.

Unity among fans

“Football is in our blood. All Egyptians are fans at some level, so it is always sad to see it when we don’t get to watch games and really establish brotherhood in the stands,” Shenawy said.

Despite the tumultuous past year and a half in Egypt, politically, socially and with sport, fans are looking to put the past behind them and move forward in a unified manner.

Ahly supporter and member of the Ultras fans, Ahmed Shebrawy argued that the violence in Port Said put football in perspective.

For him, like many others, football is an outlet, and as the national sport of Egypt, one that should be bring people together.

“We don’t need or want the divisions, we want support and to do so we have to be honorable,” he added.

BM