WARSAW (AFP) - Poland ratcheted up the pressure over football hooliganism on Wednesday, with Prime Minister Donald Tusk warning it posed a threat to Euro 2012, after crisis talks with the nation's clubs.
"If we can't settle this within months, the European Championships will be endangered," said Tusk, himself an ardent fan and Sunday league player.
After meeting with the 16 clubs in Poland's top-flight Ekstraklasa, Tusk said he had raised the spectre of widening empty-stadium penalties imposed on Lech Poznan and Legia Warsaw, whose fans marred last week's cup final.
He pledged to take "resolute action" to stem the problem.
"We understand how annoying a state reaction can be for some people, but we're not going to give up on this one. Nobody has relieved us of the responsibility to provide people with a sense of security," he added.
Even before the latest outburst of fan violence upped the ante for Tusk, his centre-right government had vowed to get tough ahead of the showcase tournament, which Poland will host with neighbouring Ukraine.
It has promised measures such as fast-track trials inside stadiums, with judges hearing cases by video-link.
In addition, hooligans who have already been banned from Poland's stadiums face electronic tagging and immediate jail if they breach their conditions.
Around 1,800 people are currently serving hooliganism-related stadium bans in Poland, a nation of 38 million.
Poland's headlines have been dominated by hooliganism in the wake of the May 3 cup final fracas in the northern city of Bydgoszcz.
After a 1-1 draw, Legia won 5-4 on penalties and supporters of both sides invaded the pitch. Besides assaulting police, stewards and reporters, they also smashed up seats.
The brawl underlined longstanding concerns about hooliganism in Poland, with only 13 months to go until the 16-nation championships kick off in Warsaw.
On Tuesday, Polish police announced they had detained 26 people involved in the Bydgoszcz trouble. They warned that more arrests were on the cards because they had identified a total of 70 individuals involved.
They have faced criticism from Polish media however for failing to make arrests at the match itself, in stark contrast with the tougher approach of police in many other European nations.
The number arrested was split equally between supporters of Lech and Legia.
Among them was Piotr Staruchowicz, or "Staruch", leader of a fan club that rules the roost at Legia.
He also made headlines last month for assaulting Legia defender Jakub Rzezniczak after a defeat.
Legia had said he would "never" be allowed back into its ground after trouble in 2009, but climbed down in the face of a fan boycott, Polish media noted, pouring scorn on the club's anti-hooligan efforts.
Staruchowicz's Lech counterpart, Krzysztof Markowicz, was also arrested this week for an assault at a previous game.
"You animals! You won't get off free!" Polish tabloid Super Express, which is running an anti-hooligan campaign, thundered on Wednesday.
It splashed its front page with a photo of a handcuffed man lying face down on the floor of his home, overseen by a masked, armed policeman.
Super Express claimed he was the Poznan fan seen kicking a Polish television camerawoman in the back at the cup final.
After the cup final, Polish authorities ordered Lech and Legia to play their next home matches in empty grounds.
That sparked a protest by 3,000 Legia fans outside their stadium on Friday, some wearing masks and threatening reporters.
Setting aside deep rivalries, fans across the league held solidarity protests over the weekend, refusing to take their seats and unfurling banners reading: "Stand closed at the request of Donald Tusk".
"If we can't settle this within months, the European Championships will be endangered," said Tusk, himself an ardent fan and Sunday league player.
After meeting with the 16 clubs in Poland's top-flight Ekstraklasa, Tusk said he had raised the spectre of widening empty-stadium penalties imposed on Lech Poznan and Legia Warsaw, whose fans marred last week's cup final.
He pledged to take "resolute action" to stem the problem.
"We understand how annoying a state reaction can be for some people, but we're not going to give up on this one. Nobody has relieved us of the responsibility to provide people with a sense of security," he added.
Even before the latest outburst of fan violence upped the ante for Tusk, his centre-right government had vowed to get tough ahead of the showcase tournament, which Poland will host with neighbouring Ukraine.
It has promised measures such as fast-track trials inside stadiums, with judges hearing cases by video-link.
In addition, hooligans who have already been banned from Poland's stadiums face electronic tagging and immediate jail if they breach their conditions.
Around 1,800 people are currently serving hooliganism-related stadium bans in Poland, a nation of 38 million.
Poland's headlines have been dominated by hooliganism in the wake of the May 3 cup final fracas in the northern city of Bydgoszcz.
After a 1-1 draw, Legia won 5-4 on penalties and supporters of both sides invaded the pitch. Besides assaulting police, stewards and reporters, they also smashed up seats.
The brawl underlined longstanding concerns about hooliganism in Poland, with only 13 months to go until the 16-nation championships kick off in Warsaw.
On Tuesday, Polish police announced they had detained 26 people involved in the Bydgoszcz trouble. They warned that more arrests were on the cards because they had identified a total of 70 individuals involved.
They have faced criticism from Polish media however for failing to make arrests at the match itself, in stark contrast with the tougher approach of police in many other European nations.
The number arrested was split equally between supporters of Lech and Legia.
Among them was Piotr Staruchowicz, or "Staruch", leader of a fan club that rules the roost at Legia.
He also made headlines last month for assaulting Legia defender Jakub Rzezniczak after a defeat.
Legia had said he would "never" be allowed back into its ground after trouble in 2009, but climbed down in the face of a fan boycott, Polish media noted, pouring scorn on the club's anti-hooligan efforts.
Staruchowicz's Lech counterpart, Krzysztof Markowicz, was also arrested this week for an assault at a previous game.
"You animals! You won't get off free!" Polish tabloid Super Express, which is running an anti-hooligan campaign, thundered on Wednesday.
It splashed its front page with a photo of a handcuffed man lying face down on the floor of his home, overseen by a masked, armed policeman.
Super Express claimed he was the Poznan fan seen kicking a Polish television camerawoman in the back at the cup final.
After the cup final, Polish authorities ordered Lech and Legia to play their next home matches in empty grounds.
That sparked a protest by 3,000 Legia fans outside their stadium on Friday, some wearing masks and threatening reporters.
Setting aside deep rivalries, fans across the league held solidarity protests over the weekend, refusing to take their seats and unfurling banners reading: "Stand closed at the request of Donald Tusk".
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