Fan violence emerged as the storyline of “Thursday Night Football” as brawling in the crowd overshadowed the San Francisco 49ers’ easy dismantling of the New York Giants in a 30-12 win.
A flood of social media videos showed the fights, which included 49ers and Giants fans battling each other, a woman having her wig pulled off, and men and women flailing away in the stands.
According to KGO-TV, it wasn’t the first time violence has erupted at Levi’s Stadium this year.
In July, a man was stabbed during a fight at a soccer match, and another brawl broke out during a preseason football game in August.
I was waiting for it lmaoooo it’s been in the works since the game started. pic.twitter.com/71zrqkEYzl
— Bruce Wayne ? (@T_Stephenson1) September 22, 2023
A #Giants fan was left bloodied after a huge fight broke out between Giants and 49ers fans yesterday, via @TMZ_Sports
This is just horrible, stop fighting at games. NFL may have to enforce stricter rules and regulations at stadiums to prevent this.https://t.co/4AlTvALHE8 pic.twitter.com/Q2Gdy49VyY
— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) September 22, 2023
Never a slow day in this stadium smh pic.twitter.com/aqaAJnycpM
— 901 Club (@PartyAt901Bar) September 22, 2023
The spectacle of fans whaling away at each other took on grisly overtones after the recent death of a New England Patriots fan following an altercation at Gillette Stadium.
The Daily Mail noted some other recent examples of violence at NFL games, including a Cincinnati Bengals fan head-butting someone and multiple fights during Sunday’s New York Jets-Dallas Cowboys matchup.
All that led the Mail’s Isabel Baldwin to suggest that it might be time to separate fans by which team they support, as is done in European soccer.
“Concern for both fan and player safety is at an all-time high and the NFL needs to strike now. The NFL is hurtling towards the inevitable. If fan violence doesn’t decrease, supporter segregation may be the only option left,” she wrote.
Writing in The Washington Post, Candace Buckner said there’s nothing new about fans fighting, but it seems to be happening more and more.
“Mix alcohol consumption, three hours of watching hand-to-hand combat — which may influence a beer-drenched brain — some trash talk and sour feelings over what happened on the field, and boom. There’s a fight in the stands.
“What seems to be new, however, is the frequency of these fights. As concerning as they are, so is our warped delight in standing there and watching.”
Buckner said the social media age has added a new dimension to fan violence.
“Comedy and karma make for idle entertainment and easy viewing. But why we watch doesn’t matter as much as this troubling truth: We just do. While our decency might remind us later that we should be disgusted by the violence, our clicks justify its existence.”
Buckner admonished the brawlers in the stands to “knock it off” while adding, “Those of us scrolling, can we please get a hold of ourselves?”
“We may not be the jousters who look pathetic hurling vulgar threats then swinging wildly, and missing, on those haymakers, but as the bystanders, we’re not innocent. The fights keep happening and the videos keep popping up. A rapt audience is waiting to stand there, to click and watch.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.