Anti-World Cup protests are not the only problem Brazilian security authorities will face during the soccer tournament. They are also bracing for an invasion of Argentine hooligans.
The soccer fan clubs called “barras bravas” in neighbouring Argentina are notoriously violent and Brazilian police are taking no chances.
Brazil plans to beef up security in and outside stadiums where arch rival Argentina will play, deploy undercover cops and bring in Argentine police officers to spot trouble-makers.
“I don’t care what they call these people. Brazilian police, in cooperation with foreign police, will be tough in responding to anyone who comes here to commit crimes,” said Andrei Rodrigues, Brazil’s security chief for the World Cup.
More than 50,000 Argentines are expected to reach Brazil for the World Cup, many driving across the border in cars and buses.
Brazil’s government already faces the threat of street protests by Brazilians opposed to the high cost of hosting the tournament.
Massive demonstrations broke out last year during the Confederations Cup, a warm-up for the World Cup, and have continued on a smaller scale, sometimes with violence.
Although deadly incidents are rare at World Cups, Argentine barras bravas have a history of violence, from stabbing English fans in Mexico in 1986 to fighting each other during the last tournament in South Africa four years ago.
Like fans from all over, many Argentines were unable to secure tickets to World Cup games and will be milling around outside the stadiums.
That could spell trouble if the barras bravas run into local fan groups, or “torcidas,” which are blamed for growing violence plaguing Brazilian soccer.
A record 30 people died in soccer-related violence last year in Brazil, according to data compiled by Brazilian researcher Mauricio Murad.
“There will be a lot of torcida youths angry that expensive tickets left them outside the stadiums. If they encounter Argentine barras bravas you could easily have clashes,” said Rafael Alcadipani, a professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation who has studied the protests around the World Cup.
“It is a very dangerous mix. The risk of violence is imminent at this World Cup.”
Like Argentina’s barras bravas, some of Brazil’s torcidas are believed to be linked to organised crime that uses them to distribute drugs and arms in slums of large cities such as Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires.
Brazilian police are also worried that Argentine barras bravas could clash with English fans in the city of Belo Horizonte where the teams will play only three days apart.
These teams have long had one of the sport’s fiercest rivalries, fueled by the Falklands war of 1982 and Diego Maradona’s notorious “Hand of God” goal that helped oust England from the 1986 tournament.
This time, England and Argentina will only face each other if they reach the final.