A growing chorus of dissent is emerging within Germany’s Green Party, challenging proposed security measures set to be implemented at football stadiums across the nation. Helge Limburg, the Green Party’s spokesperson for legal affairs in the Bundestag, has publicly criticized the escalating proposals from the Interior Ministers’ Conference, accusing them of disregarding demonstrable improvements in safety and contributing to a divisive atmosphere.
Limburg argues that the proposed security enhancements are disproportionate, particularly given the decreasing instances of violence surrounding football matches. He warned the Interior Ministers to “de-escalate verbally” emphasizing the need to end the “generalized denigration” of football fans. The criticism stems from a position paper, signed by a significant number of Green Party representatives including Konstantin von Notz, Tina Winklmann, Marcel Emmerich, Ophelia Nick and Green Party Member of the European Parliament Rasmus Andresen, which highlights the peaceful and legally compliant behavior of millions of fans who attend games weekly. The paper emphasizes that the prevailing sentiment among fans views stadium safety as “good to very good” suggesting that security tightening represents politically motivated overreach.
Of particular concern is the conflation of “Ultras” groups – often associated with hooliganism – with broader fan culture. The Green Party representatives contend that these groups frequently champion progressive causes, actively opposing sexism, racism, antisemitism, homophobia and other forms of discrimination. They advocate for strengthening this positive aspect of fan culture, rather than penalizing it through unfounded accusations and exclusively repressive measures.
The position paper specifically opposes measures such as personalized tickets, which would severely restrict the ability to share entry passes within families and friend groups. Furthermore, the proposal to implement AI-powered video surveillance in and around stadiums, together with blanket stadium bans issued simply upon the initiation of legal proceedings, are deemed incompatible with fundamental principles of due process and the rule of law.
Concluding the paper, the Green Party representatives are urgently calling upon the Interior Ministers of the Länder to abandon the currently debated proposals. They insist that a security policy grounded in respect for fundamental rights, factual evidence and empirical data is required – a stark contrast to the current trajectory towards deepened societal divisions and the potential erosion of civil liberties. The call represents a powerful and potentially significant challenge to the security agenda being pursued by the German government.
