The Battle of Rimini – England Hooligans in Italia ’90
In the summer of 1990, while the world watched Gazza’s tears and Lineker’s goals, another battle was raging off the pitch — one the cameras didn’t show.
This is the untold story of The Battle of Rimini, when hundreds of England football hooligans clashed with Italian ultras and riot police during the World Cup in Italy.
What started as a celebration turned into one of the biggest mass arrests in Italian peacetime history, as pubs were attacked, streets turned into war zones, and England fans were rounded up by the hundreds.
This documentary takes you back to that chaotic night — with first-hand accounts, rare archive detail, and an unfiltered look at the firms, the fight, and the fallout.
Whether you were there, heard about it in the pub, or lived it through the headlines — this one’s for you.
📌 Watch now and relive one of football’s most infamous nights from the glory days of the terraces.
#Italia90 #BattleOfRimini #FootballHooligans
35 Comments
the brutality that england fans faced was a joke
Fairplay to those young Shreswbury boys! respect
I was there that night,and was one of the 247 who were deported,it was all one big set up
One of West Broms infamous lads on the front line.
I was there. The Carabinieri were brutal. I was only 19 (Grimsby). We were sat outside this bar in Rimini, chilling with a few lads from Blackburn & Chelsea. This Swedish photographer asked if he could take a picture of us posing next to this fountain (it was all totally friendly, no aggro whatsoever). Next day the picture was on the front page of several Italian broadsheets, with the headline 'English hooligans on the rampage' lmao (still got a copy lol). I knew some of the lads who got shoved on that plane. One poor effer was a lawyer on holiday with his family, who went out of their hotel to get some cigs when he was pounced on by the Italian bill & deported the next morning. The nicked the exact number required to fill the plane, kept their passports too. It was all for show. Best part of the tournament – getting off the train in Naples for the Quarter Final, only to hear 'Codhead' ringing down the platform from some Barnsley lads who'd recognised us from battles back home lol. Good lads, great tournament!
I wish I couldve been there, i was too young
Good times, I loved that tournament. I had relocated to Bristol 8 or 9 months prior and hadn't bothered keeping contacts so was unaware of those Worthing capers until watching this video. (I'll concede it's also possible I forgot about it.)
I worked with a Chelsea refugee in Bristol (Bristol in fact sent a regular Chelsea following by train week-in-week-out – and I later discovered that following started congregating from Plymouth onwards) and he tried disparaging me and Worthing on the basis that Worthing hosted an annual televised lawn bowls tournament. Which proves Worthing is a soft town, right?
No mate, it proves what a pedestrian life you live. During my two years in Worthing, I had never become aware of this bowls tournament. I knew there was a bowls club, yes. Me and a mate would sometimes sneak in there to consume the burgers and kebabs we'd purchased from a nearby late night snack van. I probably only remember that because on one occasion we heard a drive-by baseball bat kerfuffle occur on the other side of the wall. The unmistakable sound of aluminium ringing and yelps of pain. Ruddy bowls hooligans. Tsk!
Television schedules for bowls tournaments: I'll confess I'm out of the loop on that one.
I was there, went to rimmini got rounded up outside the rose & crown, police were cunts,got locked up at the local nick for 2 days sitting on concrete no food, then got took to airport marched on the plane guns pointing at us, joke, I was only back 1 day then saw a mate in west brom, going back for the semi final on train, so I went, we went down to Gerona and in through back door, I got pulled of the train by old bill, police had a list of all the lads who got deported,my name was 2nd on the list, got locked up again , I told police I was on way to south of France, I had a Glasgow rangers top on,they let me go, I'd never go back to Italy, carabillini Wer cunts
I was there (Stockport). We held our own, good time 💪
Could you do a video on the ' Battle of Copenhagen ' please, mate. Arsenal v Galatasaray
I was there got deported from Rimini, went back next day wiv couple of mates from west brom on the train, police got on the train near Gerona and took me off cuz my name was 2nd on the list they had who had been deported, let me go wen I said I was on way to south ov France, think it was cuz I was wearing a rangers shirt, on the campsite in Turin the f,a, turned up in a van selling tickets for the semi final, £98 plus another £10 to join England travel club, they were as corrupt as the Italian old bill
Genoa, not gerona
Abschaum
Nope, i was throwing shapes and stacking boxes in a warehouse somewhere in 1990 :-0
I was in a train station in Sardinia just before WC kick off seen the cops performing on a group of scousers who dared sing.
La notte in cui gli inglesi presero un sacco di botte e capirono che in Italia non si scherza
Was there.. best hoolidays ever. Met some proper cool lads (if you read this Chriss from 'Soton I'm Roland from Brussels) BTW still waiting for the dutch
Pathetic!
Rimini was the scene of civil wars at the time of Caesar and of reinassence wars before bettween italian states.Brawls with four drunken slobs are humiliating
Jua ..jua…JUA…MITOMANIAC
A Cagliari gli inglesi sono stati bullizzati,picchiati e buttati in mare …in Sardegna questi ubriaconi pensavano di fare i maiali come fanno sempre, ma gli e andata molto male ai poveri inglesi…e la polizia che dite cattiva,ci ha salvato la vita a tutti…
c' était bien des anglais .
Animals – IQ close to 0
Dumbasses should have fought mass migration back then.
Os tenían ganas por lo que pasó en la final de champions Liverpool – Juve. Karma
Sei venuto a fare casino e distruzione e ti lamenti che la polizia vi riempiva di botte? Ma allora non capisci veramente un cazzo! E ricordati che cosa era successo 5 anni prima…
The narrative voice, rhetorical, depicts the poor, defenseless English boys (hooligans) who must defend themselves from the violent and uncivilized hordes of bad Italians, policemen, carabinieri, and civilians!
Did their fame precede them?
Liverpool, May 29, 1985, doesn't that remind you of anything (among other misdeeds)?
You are ALWAYS the victim.
I was there with my brother
I was at the incident in Rimini, it was at The Rose and Crown pub and England fans were to blame, I clearly remember the Italian fans were celebrating and a lad from Chesterfield (I think) chased a scooter down the road, it was a young couple waving a flag, they were just celebrating not provoking. A Stockport lad ran over and gripped him and gave him a bollocking, these weren't lads they were like Benidorm stag nighters, Rimini was overblown, the real trouble was in Turin after the semi final.
Press and their usual bs.
Wasn't there a one man (lawyer) on holiday , with his family who got deported , when he went out to buy cigarettes.
I enjoy your channel but fcuk me you sound like a robot. Spoils it completely …
Voi casino noi scopriamo le vostre donne😅
That was rubbish AI crap
Tifosi west ham…..preso tante botte da tifosi fiorentina…..in finale di conferenze league …loro tutti ubriachi ….fiorentini sobri…..picchiato tutta la curva…..