See the ultras’ plan to end single-club crowds in São Paulo | OneFootball

By Lucas Passoli and Rodrigo Matuck

The National Association of Organized Fans (ANATORG) presented a project to public agencies and entities responsible for football security policy, aiming to end the single-fan policy in classic matches in the State of São Paulo. Gazeta Esportiva accessed the document.

The proposal suggests a gradual transition, based on controlled tests. The first stage would involve pilot games with visitors occupying about 10% of the stadium's capacity, accompanied by technical reports evaluating security, logistics, fan flow, technology use, and any incidents.

The group also points out that mandatory facial recognition in stadiums can be an ally.

“There is no more anonymity in accessing stadiums. Each fan is identified, registered, and traceable, making it fully feasible to hold individuals accountable for illegal acts, eliminating any technical or legal justification for collective and permanent punishment measures. Given this advancement, maintaining broad exclusion policies — like the single-fan policy — is disconnected from the current institutional and technological reality,” stated ANATORG.

“The Brazilian State, especially the State of São Paulo, now has sufficient normative, operational, jurisdictional, and technological instruments to ensure the safety of sports events with two fan groups, preserving fundamental rights and ensuring public order,” it added.

The document also suggests traceable ticket sales restricted to registered individuals. Additionally, on the day of the classic match, fans would gather at a pre-defined meeting point, escorted by the 2nd Shock Battalion, with specific routes and reinforced camera monitoring in the visitor section.

The project was developed jointly by Claudinho, President of the National Association of Organized Fans, Alex Minduin, former director of fan rights and defense at the Ministry of Sports, and Renan Bohus, lawyer.

Scheduled Clashes

The proposal argues that the single-fan policy did not reduce violence, it only changed where it occurs. According to the text, the measure caused a “spatial, temporal, and symbolic reorganization of conflicts,” with fights now occurring in “peripheral neighborhoods, public transport stations, bus terminals, highways leading to cities, and urban areas far from the stadiums,” making violence “fragmented, decentralized, and less visible.”

As a result, the State lost the ability to prevent confrontations, which began to arise “on dates and times unrelated to the official match calendar” and often marked by “scheduled confrontations” on social media.

What Do the Organized Fans Think?

Gazeta Esportiva contacted the main organized fan groups of Corinthians, Palmeiras, Santos, and São Paulo. Gaviões da Fiel, of Timão, emphasized that it is a collective idea and stated they are cooperating to end the single-fan policy.

“Gaviões has participated in discussions and met with the Public Prosecutor's Office and Military Police, contributing technically to advance the return of two fan groups to classic matches. The topic has gained momentum and is under review by the competent authorities. It is important to note that Gaviões does not have its own project on the subject; the debate occurs collectively, through representative entities and official instances,” the entity stated.

Palmeiras fan next to a Corinthians fan (Photo: Marcelo Ferrelli/Gazeta Press)

Torcida Jovem, of Peixe, also expressed their desire for the project to advance.

“The Military Police guaranteed the operation to ensure order and protection in sports venues. The Public Prosecutor's Office reinforced its role in enforcing laws and preserving citizens' well-being. The situation reignites the debate on the return of two fan groups to stadiums. With widely available technology, such as facial biometrics and modern control systems, it is high time to ensure that rival fans coexist safely, restoring the essence of football and the spectacle of the stands,” published the Santos fans.

“The meeting marked the beginning of a broader negotiation and reinforces the willingness of organized fan groups to dialogue, collaborate, and demand responsibility from the institutions that govern São Paulo football. We continue to work and fight for the return of two fan groups to the stadiums,” they added.

Mancha Verde, of Palmeiras, and Torcida Independente, of São Paulo, did not respond by the time of this publication.

Classic matches in the State of São Paulo have had a single-fan policy since April 2016.

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This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.