NO SUCH THING AS A FREE RIDE

How about this for a ludicrous story:

Such is the fear of violence at next year’s World Cup finals that the German Government will ask Nato if it can borrow a squadron of early-warning spy aircraft to monitor the movement of potential hooligans. The E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System (Awacs) is a high-flying specialist surveillance aircraft designed to bolster air defences, but next summer it will be used to follow football fans around Germany.

As it borders nine nations, Germany is particularly vulnerable to an influx of hooligans during the World Cup, and the tournament’s organisers are taking no chances. As part of a raft of measures designed to ensure that the eighteenth World Cup passes off peacefully, Germany’s Interior Ministry will take the extraordinary step of asking Nato for the use of several of its Awacs for the duration of the tournament.

Using radar technology, Awacs has the capability to detect aircraft over 400 kilometres and such a precise surveillance system can also be used to provide an astonishingly detailed picture of human movement on the ground.

With the ability to pick out an individual’s features from long distances, the aircraft will be used to identify known hooligans and provide police with an early warning against outbreaks of violence.

The use of such surveillance systems is one of many tools to be used by the authorities to maintain order at what promises to be a uniquely difficult World Cup. In addition to traditional troublemakers from countries such as England, the Netherlands and Germany, Poland and Ukraine have also qualified for the tournament, countries that have experienced an increase in football- related violence in recent years.

While German police have strong links with their British and Dutch counterparts, with 75 officers expected to travel with the England fans, no such relationship exists with countries from Eastern Europe, presenting further problems.

The experience of August’s friendly in Rotterdam has raised hopes that hooligans can be kept away from matches after a new ticketing system was introduced with much success. The 1,500 travelling Germany fans were able only to buy vouchers, which they exchanged for match tickets on the day of the game in a safe area of Rotterdam, before being escorted to the stadium.

A similar personalised system will be in place for the World Cup, with supporters’ passport numbers appearing on their ticket and checkpoints in place outside every stadium.

With 3,100 banning orders in place, many of England’s troublemakers will be unable to travel to Germany and, by looking to move England’s group games to southern Germany, Fifa hopes to keep those who do travel away from any potential flashpoints.