Hooliganism blossoms under Aztec sun: alcohol and testosterone turn family-oriented soccer games violent.

During a recent soccer match in Mexico's colossal Aztec stadium, things started getting scary for the visiting Brazilian side. As the South American Sao Caetano team won a bad-tempered game, screaming supporters of the Mexican team America threw fire-crackers and plastic seats onto the field. Then a mob of 200 rowdy hardcore fans smashed through police lines, invaded the field and attacked the Sao Caetano players.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Literally running for their lives, the Brazilians made a mad rush to their locker room and escaped with just a few bruises. But the incident caused major injuries to Mexico's reputation as a host for international sporting events. And it sent shockwaves that reached the nation's Congress, where lawmakers clamored for new legislation to crack down on violent behavior in soccer stadiums.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

NOT FOR FAMILIES ANYMORE

Mexican soccer has traditionally been a family affair in which grandparents, couples and children enjoyed an afternoon or evening watching the world's most popular sport while cheering politely and eating tacos. But in the last five years, gangs of more aggressive fans, along the lines of soccer hooligans in Britain and Argentina, have emerged, organizing in support of all of the nation's 20 first division teams. With names like "The Chaos Ritual" and "The Addiction," the groups have grown to include thousands of supporters and have had major confrontations that have injured many young men and police officers. In one recent incident, a 17-year old boy lost an eye when a supporter from an opposing team threw a firecracker at his head.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

The gangs are also known to go on drunken rampages when they leave the stadiums, destroying cars and ransacking businesses, local authorities say. In response to the new phenomenon, some members of the Mexican Congress have proposed a bill that would give authorities greater power to clamp down on soccer violence.

"We understand that sports can make people passionate, but this behavior has become totally out of hand," said Rep. Rosalina Mazari, one of the authors of the anti-hooligan bill. Under the proposed legislation, anyone committing a violent act inside a stadium would be liable to a prison sentence of up to eight years. Furthermore, the bill would give sentences of up to 10 years or fines of up to 30,000 pesos to the organizers of sporting events who fail to provide adequate security.

For Mazari, the root causes of the problem are testosterone and alcohol. "Some people have too much aggression inside and when they get drunk they cannot control themselves," she said. But others say it is a more complicated phenomenon linked to globalization. "The kids watch television and see fighting at games in other countries, and they want to imitate it," said Miguel Bortolini, chief of Mexico City's Coyoacan district, the site of two of the nation's largest stadiums.

The new measures need to be brought in quickly to stop soccer violence escalating to the levels it has in some other countries, Bortolini said. In Britain, soccer gangs with names like "The Head Hunters" have caused dozens of deaths. Foreigners have also been directly involved in setting up soccer gangs in Mexico, said Rene Jimenez, a sociologist from Mexico's National Autonomous University (UNAM) who has carried out extensive studies on Mexican hooligans. Argentines organized Mexico's first groups of fanatical fans, he said.

THOSE CRAZY CHES

Argentina has a tradition of organizing groups of hardcore soccer supporters, known as barras bravas, or fierce fans, that goes back decades. As in Britain, fights among Argentine hooligans have resulted in many deaths. Argentine barras are also linked to organized crime gangs and have been recruited by politicians to intimidate opponents, according to reports in Argentine media.

Jimenez said some barras in Mexico are also broadening their activities and taking on criminal enterprises such as drug dealing. "The gangs are turning into true mafias," he said. However, Felipe Jacome, a leader of "The Rebel," one of Mexico's most infamous soccer gangs, said it is unfair to compare Mexican fans to their counterparts in Britain and Argentina. "We don't kill people," said Jacome, 20, a stocky aviation student. "We just give our team some strong support."

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

The Rebel formed in 1998 with 11 people, and it has mushroomed, counting more than 6,000 members who sing, shout, and batter drums at the games of The Pumas, the UNAM's home team.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

REBEL VS. ADDICTION

Jacome said The Rebel used to fight in its early days, but now its members are generally peaceful. But he said they will defend themselves, especially if attacked by their archrivals, "The Addiction of Monterrey," which he said was the most violent soccer gang in Mexico. However, The Addiction said in an email that the Monterrey supporters were no more violent than any other barras. "We are fans and nothing more," said the email message, which was signed as "an official message from The Addiction."

Members of The Rebel come from all walks of life, said Eduardo Ariza, 25, a computer programmer during the week and a hardcore soccer fan on the weekend. "The Rebel has everyone from yuppies to homeless kids and we are all united," he said. "There is no discrimination."

But the members of many other soccer gangs are solidly working class, Ariza said, with their core support coming from Mexico's toughest neighborhoods. For Ariza, it is much more enjoyable to watch soccer as part of an organized mob of thousands than with just a couple of friends.

"When you are with so many people all shouting together, you feel a crazy rush of adrenalin," Ariza said. "You forget about everything, about all your problems."

For Ricardo Castro, 44, a physician, the soccer gangs have become a problem. Castro used to enjoy spending Sunday afternoons watching soccer games with his wife and children. But he said the presence of drunken hooligans hurling firecrackers has stopped him from going.

"These gangs should not exist in Mexico," Castro said. "They are imported rubbish. We have our own peaceful traditions of supporting soccer."

Ioan Grillo is a correspondent in Mexico for the Houston Chronicle.