Ex-football hooligan names England's 8 toughest fanbases | OneFootball

A former Bradford City football hooligan has named the eight toughest fanbases in English football...

The infamous football hooliganism scene still lives on in English football to this very day, even if the authorities have succeeded in significantly reducing such forms of matchday disorder in recent years - and a well-known former hooligan has named the eight toughest fanbases he fought with during his days on the footballing frontlines.

From the 1970s and 1980s up until the turn of the millennium, hooliganism was a defining part of the matchday experience and was enjoyed by many, though those simply interested in watching the game will be relieved that mass fights between opposition fans are nowhere near as commonplace as they once were.

It's an issue that does remain in existence, however, and it's on the rise once again, as general arrest figures in recent years show.

As such, it's hardly a rare sight to see this form of trouble break out either before or after matches in the Premier League right down to League Two.

Even right now, exactly who has the toughest fanbase is still a frequent talking point among supporters. Some clubs, of course, are synonymous with trouble on the terraces and beyond, and certain reputations have stood the test of time.

Former hooligan Daniel Wright, who was a former member of Bradford City's notorious firm 'The Ointment', has previously spent six years behind bars for his role in football-based violence and looked back at experiences on James English's 'Anything Goes' podcast in November of last year.

Wright has detailed the eight toughest fanbases he experienced in English football - and Football League World has decided to take a close look at the clubs in question, with some notable omissions in the likes of Cardiff City, Chelsea, Portsmouth and West Ham.

Aston Villa

The ex-hooligan summarised a range of fanbases he encountered throughout his days exchanging fists with opposition supporters, and after rounding up the top five - which we will come onto - he offered some honorable mentions to complete what can be described as a top-eight.

One of those clubs in question is Aston Villa, who may not have the same fearsome reputation as fierce Second City rivals Birmingham City but are still widely-regarded as one of the stronger clubs within the hooliganism scene.

There has always been strong, passionate and extremely well-backed fanfare at Villa Park, and it's perhaps unsurprising that this has spilled over into disorder over the years.

More recently, Villa saw a reduction in excess of 50% for fan arrests in the 2025/26 campaign from the one before that, despite having a full season of fixtures and numerous spicy European clashes to contend with as Unai Emery's side won the Europa League.

Sheffield United

Sheffield United perhaps lack the hooliganism reputation of other clubs named by Wright, although Bramall Lane can often be a daunting place to visit in its own right and Blades fans often get well up for it when a big local derby is in store.

There are many clubs scattered across Yorkshire and meetings between Bradford and United were clearly tasty back in the day, with the two sides locking horns on many occasions throughout the 1980s and 90s.

They haven't met since 2017 now, but if they end up facing each other again in the near future, you can only imagine that a number of fans on both sides of this particular cross-Yorkshire divide will be looking to make up for lost time.

Once again, the Blades are another club who like to get on top of their opponents inside the ground by spurring their team on with an almighty racket when they feel like it - and that often correlates with trouble before or once the match is finished.

This time, it's no surprise whatsoever to see Leeds United receive a mention among the country's gamest supporters.

Backed by an often-vociferous Elland Road crowd over the years, Leeds have always been recognised as one of the toughest fanbases in the land and will have no doubt been particularly up for the fight when going to battle with 'The Ointment' in various West Yorkshire derbies.

That's not where Wright's most memorable encounter lies, however. Although he claims that Bradford often had the better of Leeds, he was left impressed by the antics of Whites supporters during a clash between England and Turkey at the Stadium of Light.

Wright explained: "Sheffield United, Leeds, Aston Villa, those teams I would probably have up there as well.

"I would say in my time we have always got the better of Leeds but I have seen Leeds on their day, like England and Turkey in the Stadium of Light.

"That firm of Leeds I saw that day was an absolutely unbelievable firm. They are a top firm on their day, you can’t deny that."

His sentiment is echoed by many who participated in the heyday of football hooliganism, of which the club's notorious 'Leeds Service Crew' was right at the forefront.

Despite the reductions, Leeds are still commonly associated with matchday trouble and topped the domestic table for football-based arrests throughout the 2019/20 campaign as Marcelo Bielsa's side won the Championship title.

Middlesbrough

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Middlesbrough were referenced in Wright's top-five, which doesn't operate in any particular by his own admission but nonetheless shines a light on who the toughest fans in the country really are.

Boro's staunch contingent - 'The Frontline' - were as notorious as their name would suggest before the turn of the millienium, with the Teessider's former Ayresome Park home often representing an intense, in-your-face visit for those making the trip up to the north-east.

The Riverside Stadium, quite naturally, doesn't hold quite the same level of traditionalism and intimidation, but Middlesbrough fans still make it a cauldron of noise and have both the volume and numbers to put opponents on the back foot.

Away from the stands, though, trouble still remains afoot, of which a reminder was sent in when 12 Boro fans were arrested for violent disorder after their high-profile clash with Millwall - whose reputation in this regard requires no introduction - back in April.

Birmingham City

One of the most prominent footballing gangs of the 1980's were none other than the 'Zulus', who represented Birmingham City across England.

The Zulus were famed for being very multicultural during their heyday and still are to this day, with one of their more recognisable incidents in the 80s being a pitch invasion in 1989 when Blues took on Crystal Palace, in which 20 members were arrested after a battle with police on the Selhurst Park pitch, which saw horses enter the scene too.

Their action continued into the 1990s and 2000s, with 15 City fans arrested in 2002 in connection with violence against fans of bitter rivals Aston Villa before one of their Premier League clashes, and in 2007, five Birmingham hooligans were jailed for incidents which occurred at Cardiff City's old home of Ninian Park in 2006, where a steward was left blind in one eye due to trouble caused by fans in the away end.

Nowadays, the Zulu's are more of a legacy network of old school Birmingham City fans, rather than a hooligan firm, and they're without doubt one of the best-known in the country.

Millwall

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To this very day, Millwall's The Den is one of the most intimidating stadiums in England to visit, and even though hooliganism has somewhat reduced since the 1980s, some of their fans have still been involved in recent incidents.

Crowd disturbances at Lions games can be traced back to the early 1900s, but it came more into regular prominence from the South Bermondsey outfit in the 1960s, with their Bushwackers firm coming to prominence.

In 1978, Sir Bobby Robson - then Ipswich Town manager - astonishingly said that Millwall fans should have flamethrowers set on them after they were fighting among themselves in a clash with the Tractor Boys at The Den, one which they were being comprehensively defeated in on the pitch.

There have been a number of publicised 'riots' over the years involving Millwall - Kenilworth Road in 1985 when facing Luton Town, after they lost to Birmingham City in the second tier play-off semi-finals in 2002, the incidents inside Upton Park in 2009 when clashing with rivals West Ham in the EFL Cup, albeit the club were cleared of all charges on that one, multiple incidents at Wembley in 2013 against Wigan Athletic and 2016 against Barnsley, and recently in 2019, Millwall fans clashed with Everton on the streets prior to their FA Cup fixture.

That was something the Met Police described as the 'most shocking' football violence in a long time, and whiist those types of incidents are still rare in the modern day Millwall following, they're still an intimidating fanbase to come across at both home and away matches.

Tottenham

Another one of the prime firms of the hooliganism trend of the 1970s was Tottenham's 'Yid Army', although earlier than that, in 1969, the 'The Battle of Flitwick', where their fans caused carnage in the Bedfordshire town after causing damage to a London-bound train following defeat to Derby County gained national attention.

Rioting Spurs fans in Rotterdam in 1974 prior to the UEFA Cup final saw them land a two-match stadium ban at White Hart Lane, and it happened again during the 1983-84 season, with a Tottenham supporter being shot dead in Brussels prior to their Final clash with Anderlecht.

In the 21st century, Spurs are perhaps not the most feared hooligans in the country, and their fanbase appear to have somewhat mellowed, although some still exist - Dante Hawkins is a well-known individual who was the subject of a BBC documentary, and in 2025 he was sentenced to 40 months in prison and a 10-year football banning order for his part in violent disorder in 2023 after a match against Southampton.

Man United

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The Red Army - Man United's historic firm - is thought to be one of the most notorious of its kind in the peak hooliganism era.

And when the Red Devils suffered a surprise relegation from the top flight of English football in 1974, their army of away fans tended to cause chaos on their travels around the UK in their promotion-winning campaign, with many of their actions leading to fencing and segregation being placed at stadiums.

Some of the worst rioting was set to follow though involving United fans, including the 1977 FA Cup semi-final against Leeds United at Hillsborough, the 1989 Manchester Derby at Maine Road against Man City, and they were even front and centre of a BBC documentary in 1985 titled Hooligan, which showed the Red Army fighting with West Ham's Inter City Firm around Manchester.

Man Utd still have a passionate fanbase and a great travelling support wherever they go, and many of them still wear all black clothes like the Red Army did back in the 70s and 80s - the violence is not as prominent though as it once was, much like most firms in the country.