National Football Information Point

The group is comprised of leading governmental and football policing experts drawn from all 27 Member States (MS) and other States that are responsible for the police cooperation related to football matches with an international dimension - currently made up of 38 active members. The group was established in 2001 by the Interior Ministry and policing football specialists in Belgium, Germany, Netherlands and the UK in the wake of serious incidents of football violence and disorder during the 1998 World Cup in France and the 2000 European Championships in Belgium. The aim was and still is to provide a mechanism for enabling experts to develop European-wide measures for preventing and tackling football-related violence and disorder in order to minimise safety and security risks to millions of European citizens who attend matches or reside and work in the vicinity of football stadia.