Javier Tebas: "Our challenge is to stamp out violence at academy and amateur level."

LaLiga president Javier Tebas; Miguel Cardenal, the chairman of the High Council for Sport (CSD); and Ignacio Cosido, the general director of the National Police Corps (CNP), took part in the closing ceremony of the 5th National Seminar on Security and Integrity. Co-organised by LaLiga, the CNP and fan group Aficiones Unidas (AFEPE), this event featured contributions by representatives from the organisations coordinating security at clubs and the state security forces, as well as by members of supporters' clubs and LaLiga match directors. 

The LaLiga president thanked all those in attendance for their efforts at games up and down Spain every weekend. "We've managed to achieve the targets we set two years ago, eradicating the seeds that sow the threat of physical violence and clamping down on verbal violence, with the amount of large-scale abuse at stadiums falling," Tebas said. On this note, it has been confirmed that – as part of its weekly reporting process concerning abusive chants and comments that it considers should be investigated – LaLiga will be referring the journalist Victor Altadill's social-media remarks wishing harm on Real Madrid CF to the Anti-Violence Commission. 

"We must continue to leave no stone unturned and keep working relentlessly," Tebas added, noting that, "at LaLiga we are already working on the second phase of the initiative to install biometric turnstiles and security cameras in the most problematic areas of stadiums." 

Tebas went on to suggest that now is the time to set new challenges. "We have to try to extrapolate this work to other levels of Spanish football. At LaLiga we are passing information on to the RFEF [Royal Spanish Football Federation] about situations taking place in amateur and youth football, but this information is falling on deaf ears." In this regard, the LaLiga chief outlined that, "Our next challenge is to see what the task at hand is to attempt to stamp out violence in amateur football." Similarly, Tebas explained that, through campaigns like the 'Future Fans' initiative, "LaLiga is striving to involve schools in the bid to combat verbal violence through education." 

For his part, Cardenal thanked LaLiga for "the commitment it has shown in the fight against corruption in sport and everything that runs counter to sporting values." The Secretary of State for Sport highlighted that, "This seminar has established itself thanks to everyone's efforts," adding that, "the determination shown by LaLiga is admirable, as is the continued commitment of the security forces and corps. They have changed football."

Cosido, meanwhile, echoed the above mentioned expressions of gratitude to LaLiga and stated that, "We have the best football league in the world and one of the safest, and we owe that to the work of everyone who is here today." He went on to comment that the police have "seen a reduction in the number of interventions we carry out at many matches," which he put down to "the joint work of everyone concerned." Cosido rounded off by praising the way in which LaLiga has teamed up with other stakeholders and urged those in attendance "to remain on the right track and keep up the good work."