ENABLE Sweden filling the knowledge gap about SLO role
ENABLE Sweden recently put its focus on the Supporter Liaison Officer Role in two published research articles, both contributing to the limited knowledge about the role in European football.
The role as Supporter Liaison Officer (SLO) was incorporated into the UEFA licensing system from the start of the 2012/2013 season however previous research indicates that implementation across Europe varies. In Sweden, the introduction of the SLO role was facilitated through the project ‘Stå upp för fotbollen’ (Stand up for football) which was coordinated by Svensk Elitfotboll (SEF). The project made it possible for five – at a later stage six – clubs to employ full-time SLO’s through seed money from the project with Djurgården being one of these. Part of the conclusions in the two articles is that the project, which was initiated in 2012, has had a positive impact on the implementation of the SLO role in Sweden.
“The Stand up for football has contributed to a strong commitment by the Swedish football clubs driven by close and strong collaboration between the SLOs mainly among the Swedish SLOs but also internationally. This has been facilitated by Supporters Direct who have played a crucial role in the implementation of the role across Europe”, says Anders Almgren, operational manager, ENABLE Sweden
SLO and supporter involvement
The two articles present two different approaches to the SLO role. The article “The value of Supporter Liaison Officers (SLOs) in fan dialogue, conflict, governance and football crowd management in Sweden” analyse the role as a model that empowers supporter engagement and thus increases supporter involvement in football governance. The article suggests that it is a win-win situation for all stakeholder as it strengthens the football club’s capacity to manage the group level dynamics of crowd events, within which their supporters are involved, in ways that contribute towards making football better and safer for everyone involved – the fans, the clubs, the police, and of course, society in general.
SLOs in action
The other article “Swedish Supporter Liaison Officers in Action” aims at giving a description of how the SLOs work and how they perceive the role. The article describes the routines and working processes that the SLOs are involved in both on matchdays and between matches. The article underlines the complexities of the role. The article shows how SLOs use their position to make the voice of these supporters heard by the club and police, and to enhance positive and responsible behaviour within the supporter community. However, at the same time, they work to prevent disorder and conflicts that hold the potential to develop into arrests and the criminalisation of supporters. The SLOs achieve this by working to a particular ethical code of conduct that allows them to operate with high levels of discretion, have credibility among fans but also have an effective working relationship with the police. With trust and legitimacy as their main tools they are highly reliant on stakeholders understanding the context within which they are operating, and the underpinnings and understandings that enable them to navigate it effectively. The complexities are acknowledged by the operational manager of ENABLE Sweden, Anders Almgren, who has been working as an SLO before joining ENABLE Sweden:
“The role is complex, but it has also shown to be highly effective in the facilitation of supporter crowds, planning to avoid disturbances and in de-escalating incidents. It has strengthened the relationship between supporters and clubs and improved the working relationship between both supporters, clubs and the police. The Swedish SLOs play an important role in Swedish football today and I am sure that other countries could benefit from getting access to the knowledge and experiences from Swedish football and I am glad that ENABLE Sweden has contributed to bridging the knowledge gap”, says Anders Almgren, operational manager, ENABLE Sweden
Despite a well-functioning SLO role in Sweden, the SLOs see potential in employing more SLOs in the clubs. The reason for that is that the SLOs have to prioritise their time to the most active supporters. The SLOs express a wish for more time to spend on e.g. elderly supporters, children and families. There is thus a potential for development of the role, but the two published research articles underline that the SLO role in Sweden is highly effective and has improved the working relations between clubs, police and supporters.
The articles are authored by researchers from Sweden, Denmark and UK and are published in two scientific journals.
Reference to the published articles:
Madsen, E, Khan, S. Williams, N., & Havelund, J. (2019). Swedish Supporter Liaison Officers in Action. Idrottsforum.org. https://idrottsforum.org/madsenetal190226/
Stott, C., Khan, S., Madsen, E., & Havelund, J. (2018). The value of Supporter Liaison Officers (SLOs) in fan dialogue, conflict, governance and football crowd management in Sweden. Soccer and Society. https://doi.org/10.1080/14660970.2018.1553777
Supporter 2 Reporter – Leyton Orient Trust
