In La Liga the rich drink and the poor abstain

In Spain it is taken for granted that the English are class-oriented, but the Spanish, with their Mediterranean climate and natural bonhomie, get along with everyone and, when it comes to having a drink, they do not distinguish between rich and poor, upper class or short, dark or light skin.

In reality, at least in terms of alcohol consumption in football stadiums, the English treat the rich exactly the same as the poor, while in Spain the rich or influential with access to a box can drink but the poor condemned to the stands do not have right to consume alcohol.

It is considered another established truth that football and alcohol go badly together and that violence in the stands disappears if beer also disappears.

However, there is the paradox that in England, with a legendary history of violence in football that has been mitigated over time, alcohol can be drunk in stadiums while in Spain, where there have only been occasional problems, it is prohibited. do it since 1990.

What really separates both countries in this matter is that while the authorities in Spain take the middle road and choose the easiest way (prohibition), the English opt for a more tolerant but more complex and more expensive solution : tolerate consumption but in a controlled way.

And that control begins by investing in security cameras to identify and expel the rioters and is complemented by deploying an army of security officers (the

) duly trained, always very visible both between the field and the stands and within the stands.

In Spain there are also, but in such an insignificant number that they barely fulfill the function of deterring potential troublemakers, especially in those pathetic artificial animation stands created to give atmosphere on television and to keep the rioters together and under control.

In addition, in England the police have the last word to decide the schedules of the matches and impose that the high-risk ones be played in the morning so that the fans do not have time to get drunk all day while waiting for the match.

In Scotland, where alcoholism is rampant, consumption is still prohibited in the stadiums but there are movements that defend the lifting of that ban except in very high-risk matches, such as the Glasgow derby between Celtic and Rangers.

And they remember the example that the ban on rugby was lifted in 2007 and there have been no problems.

Or that cricket doesn't make much sense if you can't have booze, and tea, and cucumber sandwiches during games.

It is this thorough security preparation that allows the English to be much more tolerant.

But here too there are sacred rules: no alcohol can be consumed in the stands (in rugby or cricket, yes).

The fans have to go to the bars in the corridors to buy their pints of beer and they have to drink them there.

But that rule also affects the audience in the boxes: you can drink inside the box, but what you can't do is drink and watch the game at the same time.

This means that, as soon as the match begins, some curtains are drawn so that the game cannot be seen from inside the box and the occupants have to go out (without drinks, like the rest of the public!), to their seat in the stands, usually adjacent to the box.

There are those who mistakenly believe in Spain that the curtains are closed so that the rich can drink without outside eyes.

It is not like this.

It is in Spain, on the other hand, where ordinary fans cannot drink in the stands or in the corridors while the privileged enjoy the match, glass in hand, in their boxes and even in the stands.

That is called discrimination.

That is classism.

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