All Football League games are set to go ahead this weekend following riots in the United Kingdom, a policing official has confirmed.
The football season in the country will get underway again on Friday night as the Championship takes centre stage, with Preston hosting Sheffield United and Derby travelling to Blackburn.
On Saturday, 30 more games in the Football League are scheduled to take place – the Premier League booked to return next week, with Manchester United versus Fulham first up.
News in the United Kingdom has this week however been dominated by unrest on the streets of the country, with the likes of Manchester, Plymouth and Birmingham all playing host to unsavoury scenes.
They won’t impact the start of the football season, however, Chief Constable Mark Roberts, NPCC Lead for Football Policing, has said, with the offical confident that the weekend can pass safely for all fans.
All Football League games are expected to go ahead as planned this weekend amid riots on the streets of the UK
The Championship, won by Leicester City last season, will kick off the new campaign on Friday evening
‘The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) have been working closely with all forces, the Premier League, the EFL and other national policing bodies to support the start of the new football season,’ Roberts said. ‘Currently there is no suggestion of any fixtures being postponed this weekend.
‘Should there be any issues, be they purely football related or linked to the violent incidents of earlier in the week, then forces are well prepared with significantly more public order officers available than normal.
‘As we have seen, whatever the alleged motivation, any acts of criminality will be dealt with swiftly and robustly with offenders facing the full weight of the courts, which if football related will include banning orders. It is important we allow the overwhelming majority of fans to enjoy the start of the new season in safety.’
False speculation online that the teenage suspect of the Southport knife rampage which claimed the lives of three young girls and left many others injured was an asylum seeker who had arrived in the UK on a boat fuelled the unrest, which started outside a mosque in Southport and spread across the country.
Right-wing groups have organised dozens of protests from Manchester to Hull and Middlesbrough to Plymouth, with many filled with anti-immigrant rhetoric. Riots have seen hotels housing migrants set on fire and police attacked with bricks or glass bottles.
A number of suspects have been arrested on the back of the unrest, which recently saw counter protesters take to the streets to try and quell the riots.
Police officers have been tasked with trying to control the protests on streets across country
A number of teams are set to play matches in locations close to where riots have taken place
A number of teams are set to play games this weekend that are close to where the riots have been taking place, with the likes of Middlesbrough and Tranmere Rovers due to play at home.
There has been concern over protests potentially breaking out inside stadiums, but Roberts has insisted that police will be prepared if that happens.