From the City of Brotherly Love’s ‘lamp-post challenge’ to Auckland’s street riots, passionate sport fans don’t always behave – so how do cities keep them in check?

Two Sundays ago, Philadelphia police district captains were granted an unusual expansion to their powers: they were allowed to smear Crisco – vegetable shortening used for cooking – on streetlights. The idea was to prevent Philadelphia Eagles fans celebrating their team’s victory in the NFC Championship Game from climbing the poles – as Eagles fans traditionally tend to do – risking injury and damage to public property. But Crisco wasn’t enough to stop them.

Some of the estimated 12,000 fans who filled the streets following the Eagles’ victory over the Minnesota Vikings scaled the greased poles anyway, achieving viral video fame in the process. There was even the suggestion that police had goaded them into trying.

Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) The grease didn’t work. pic.twitter.com/it0XDv4Nvs

“The fact that we were greasing [the streetlights] doesn’t mean we were daring people to climb them,” Sgt Eric Gripp, police spokesman, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “It’s the exact opposite ... Unfortunately it became a thing ahead of time so people thought we were daring them to topple the grease.”

Police are being more circumspect about their contingency plans for an Eagles victory against the New England Patriots at the Super Bowl in Minneapolis this weekend. At a press conference on Tuesday, Philadelphia police commissioner Richard Ross said Crisco would not be employed again because it wasn’t slick enough, adding: “We will be doing some other things relative to keeping fans off certain objects.”

But as the Inquirer’s Stephanie Farr observed, “in a city that’s famous for rebellion and has a well-established greased-pole climbing competition, protecting Philly fans from themselves is far from a piece of cake, even if you have all the Crisco in the world”.

Philadelphia’s light pole challenge is a reminder that mayhem is as much a part of team sports as trophy presentations and parades, and one city officials dutifully prepare to manage. When the final seconds tick down at the Super Bowl, chaos from thousands of fans celebrating victory or lashing out over defeat will hit the streets not just of Minneapolis, but the homes of both teams.

The Philadelphia Eagles have never won a Super Bowl in the 52-year history of the game – they haven’t even taken part since 2005. It has only fuelled the enthusiasm of a fanbase desperate to celebrate its first championship.

If the Eagles win, city police expect the number of fans in the streets to dwarf the 12,000 of two weeks ago. They also say they’ll be ready for anything, implementing checkpoints to inspect fans for weapons and bottles. “We will be ready. We will be out there with a sizeable contingent of offices,” said commissioner Ross, refusing to give a specific number. “We will make every effort to show that we are about business, but we are also in the business of allowing people to celebrate – as long as it’s done peacefully.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A greased street light in South Philadelphia ahead of the NFL game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Minnesota Vikings on 21 January. Photograph: Tim Tai/AP

Philadelphia’s preparations pale in comparison with those under way in Minneapolis. When the city was selected as the host of Super Bowl LII, all the way back in May 2014, officials began an exhaustive process of preparing for the crush of fans due to hit the area. Representatives from the Minneapolis police department were sent to Arizona for the Super Bowl in 2015, Santa Clara in 2016 and then to Houston last year to shadow and learn from the efforts there. Minneapolis plans to meld Santa Clara’s strategy of a highly visible police presence with the less intrusive methods adopted in Houston 12 months ago.

The plan utilises a “joint powers agreement” facilitating the cooperation of 59 local law enforcement agencies, including public safety officials at state and federal levels. Dogs, cameras and even some police officers wearing Swat gear will be visible as other officers work the crowds undercover. Minneapolis police spokesperson Sgt Darcy Horn said there would be more emergency call responders rostered on and that they, “along with 10,000 volunteers, will be visible at the Super Bowl events throughout the metro area and around downtown Minneapolis”.



Philadelphia Police (@PhillyPolice) Now comes the time in the night where we must warn everyone about the dangers of Saturated Fats. Cheers for #Foles! Jeers for #Poles! It's a long way down, baby. Celebrate responsibly! pic.twitter.com/mES5MpPTY4

Horn would not say whether there were intentions to grease streetlights in Minneapolis in preparation for the influx of Eagles supporters, saying only that police’s “contingency plans encompass a wide variety of factors, including zealous die-hard fans”.

The reality of hosting large sporting events is that lives can be at stake. Following the Detroit Tigers’ World Series baseball victory in 1984, some fans looted buildings and burned police cars; the opposing team, the San Diego Padres, needed a police escort to escape the area unscathed. Six years later, after the Detroit Pistons’ NBA Finals win, seven people were killed during the resulting violence. More than 30 years later, Detroit is still cited as a cautionary tale of what can happen when cities aren’t prepared for fans’ celebratory chaos.

Vancouver’s image took a similar hit due to the riot that followed ice hockey side the Canucks losing in the 2011 Stanley Cup final. Though there was no loss of life, rioters caused extensive damage throughout the city, with costs estimated to have exceeded $4m. Some 140 people, including several police officers, were injured; there were four stabbings, fires were started, and more than 300 people were eventually charged.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Canucj fans pose in front of a burning vehicle during the Vancouver riots in 2011. Photograph: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

These types of incidents are by no means confined to North America. Last November, celebrations in the Auckland suburb of Otahuhu got out of hand after Tonga beat the Kiwis in the Rugby League World Cup. Fireworks were set off near a gasoline station and objects were hurled at police, resulting in 53 arrests.

In Colombia in 2013, 40 fan fatalities linked to football-related violence were recorded; 18 died the same year in Argentina, prompting Lionel Messi to release an anti-violence video. Even the gentleman’s game is not excepted: a controversial umpiring decision in a cricket match between New South Wales and an English team in the late 19th century prompted the Sydney riot of 1879, in which enraged fans stormed the pitch and attacked both the umpire and the English players.

But in present day Boston, at least, they are quietly confident ahead of the Super Bowl LII – both in their preparations for Sunday’s crowds and of the Patriots’ chances for a record-tying sixth title. It will be the Patriots’ eighth Super Bowl appearance in the past 17 years, while Boston’s professional baseball, basketball and hockey teams have made several championship round appearances over the same period.

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Dealing with the influx of hundreds of thousands of people for championship parades is business as usual for the city, but officials take it no less seriously. Officer Rachel McGuire gave a clear nod to the city’s run of sporting successes in her emailed response to questions about police’s preparations for Super Bowl Sunday: “We do anticipate the plan being very similar to those of the past (SEVERAL) years.”

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