The godfathers of soccer violence are to be targeted by an anti-hooligan taskforce set up by West Midlands Police, the Evening Mail can reveal today.
The team will gather intelligence on the ringleaders who orchestrate violent street battles and crowd trouble.
Police want to ban them from all games at home and abroad.
The crackdown will target the known hooligan 'firms' attaching themselves to clubs, such as Aston Villa and Birmingham City, ahead of the new season and Euro 2004.
West Midlands Police today warned there would be "no hiding place" for thugs using football as an excuse for organised violence.
Around 60 officers will monitor hooligan groups on and around matchdays and drawing up profiles of those involved.
The initiative is aimed at preventing a repeat of the ugly scenes that marred games such as the high profile Second City derbies last season. It is hoped football banning orders will not only clean up the game in the region but, with a number of Midlands-based fans active on the England hooligan scene, also prevent thugs travelling to Portugal next year.
A specific spotlight will be thrown on the hard-core hooligan element attached to Wolves.
Insp Sue Parker, of West Midlands Police operations department, said: "We will be carrying out a proactive operation to target hooligan groups.
"Those intent on causing trouble will be arrested at the earliest opportunity and we will use banning orders to stop them going to games.
"We will be gathering increased intelligence on the network of these groups."
According to the latest figures, there were 134 arrests at Villa Park last season, 48 of them home fans, with further arrests outside the ground. A further 85 Villa fans were arrested when violence erupted at away games.
At St Andrew's, there were 98 arrests, 44 of them home fans.
Police arrested 44 people at West Bromwich's Hawthorns ground and a total of 68 were picked up at Wolves' Molineux stadium, two thirds of them home fans.
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The team will gather intelligence on the ringleaders who orchestrate violent street battles and crowd trouble.
Police want to ban them from all games at home and abroad.
The crackdown will target the known hooligan 'firms' attaching themselves to clubs, such as Aston Villa and Birmingham City, ahead of the new season and Euro 2004.
West Midlands Police today warned there would be "no hiding place" for thugs using football as an excuse for organised violence.
Around 60 officers will monitor hooligan groups on and around matchdays and drawing up profiles of those involved.
The initiative is aimed at preventing a repeat of the ugly scenes that marred games such as the high profile Second City derbies last season. It is hoped football banning orders will not only clean up the game in the region but, with a number of Midlands-based fans active on the England hooligan scene, also prevent thugs travelling to Portugal next year.
A specific spotlight will be thrown on the hard-core hooligan element attached to Wolves.
Insp Sue Parker, of West Midlands Police operations department, said: "We will be carrying out a proactive operation to target hooligan groups.
"Those intent on causing trouble will be arrested at the earliest opportunity and we will use banning orders to stop them going to games.
"We will be gathering increased intelligence on the network of these groups."
According to the latest figures, there were 134 arrests at Villa Park last season, 48 of them home fans, with further arrests outside the ground. A further 85 Villa fans were arrested when violence erupted at away games.
At St Andrew's, there were 98 arrests, 44 of them home fans.
Police arrested 44 people at West Bromwich's Hawthorns ground and a total of 68 were picked up at Wolves' Molineux stadium, two thirds of them home fans.
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