Flare, Football Culture or Football Threat?

 

Source: Wearemania

Flares are part of the ship's safety equipment that every ship must provide. When this tool is turned on, it will emit sparks and red smoke. Normally the use of this tool is as a tool to mark a point or whereabouts of disaster victims. In football itself, flares are not something new, supporters divert their use as a tool to celebrate something or attract the attention of the audience. However, this flare is often misused and becomes a tool for carrying out anarchic actions, starting from throwing the flare at the opponent's driver to suffocating when it is lit in large quantities.

Two supporters of the Indonesian giants were recently caught lighting flares in the final week of the BRI Liga 1. Persija faced PSS Sleman and Persib Bandung faced Persikabo 1973. Both supporters lit flares at the end of the match. However, the two teams had different fates where Persija supporters lit flares to celebrate the 5-2 victory over PSS Sleman at the Bung Karno Stadium with 60,000 spectators while Persib Bandung supporters celebrated their team's defeat after their team was slaughtered by Persikabo 1973 with a score of 1-4.

As a result, visibility was reduced due to the thick smoke and the match atmosphere became cloudy due to the large number of spectators who pushed out of the stadium to avoid smoke flares. PSSI itself has banned the use of flares because it further spoils the atmosphere of the match and encourages the audience to be anarchic but supporters still smuggle them into the stadium. Let's wait and see what happens to Persib and Persija regarding this flare incident and the nominal fine they will receive.