Does football encourage violent anti-social behaviour?
Football is a contact sport. However, it does not encourage violent behavior. Violence involves the deliberate attempt to injure another person and is normally associated with a lack of emotional control. Control is a key to success in sport and football is no exception. A player who loses control is going to make mistakes, mistakes that can cost his/her team a game. Coaches work hard at teaching athletes to maintain control at all times. When successful the human tendency towards violent behavior is put under strict control. Football may be better than many sports at teaching our young athletes to control their tempers and apply their aggressive tendencies positively.
