FC Barcelona fans are known worldwide for their energy, chants, and loudness. However, one particular group took the support for the Blaugrana club to another level. Boixos Nois, founded in 1981, is a far-right political group that supports FC Barcelona. “Boixos Nois”, meaning the “Crazy boys”, is a group of young men, particularly in their 20s are renowned for crazy activities outside and inside the Camp Nou. The Ultra group is currently banned from attending home matches, but there is a long and complicated reason behind their exile.
The growing popularity of Boixos Nois
The Ultra group has been gaining more and more support from international fans and has several accounts on social media with a considerable following. The fans often complain about the absence of loud, energetic fans in the stadium to cheer the team on. The complaint might have some weight behind it, as at times the atmosphere inside the Camp Nou and now the Montjuic is not the best. Since Barcelona is such a famous club worldwide, there are a lot of tourists present at home games. These tourists or fans from other countries do not usually know the chants, and so a fairly quiet atmosphere is seen. Fans online are often advocating for Boixos Nois to be unbanned so the once-overwhelming atmosphere returns to the home games.
The unknown history of the Ultra group
After their formation in 1981, Boixos Nois gradually grew until they arguably became the biggest Barcelona supporting group. The group grew in number so much that they took over the entire Gol Nord in the Camp Nou. The group was known for insulting opponents, causing unrest, and fighting opposing fans. These hooligans were responsible for the first death by violence in the history of Spanish football. In 1991, five members of the group beat an Espanyol fan to death. There are still a lot of groups present at home matches, which are Boixos Nois in disguise. Recently, the adventurous actions of these groups have cost Barça a lot of fines from UEFA. Boixos Nois have carried extremist signs to away matches, which caused €10,000 – € 20,000 in fines from UEFA. The club asked these groups to take responsibility and pay the fine, which they refused to do.
The incident that caused the ban
On December 20th 1997, a moment of silence was observed in the Camp Nou in memory of a Boixos Nois member, Sergio Sota. The silence, however, was disrupted, not by the away fans but by other Barcelona fans in the stadium. Chants of “fascists out of the Camp Nou” could be heard, which made the Boixos Nois members react. They spread throughout the stadium and started attacking fans they thought were guilty of chanting. Sang Cule, a pro-independence and anti-fascist group, was central to these chants. A huge debate erupted in Catalonia after this incident, and many fans blamed the club for allowing it to happen. Joan Laporta vowed to ban Boixos Nois from the stadium in his 2003 presidential election campaign. This, along with a fake transfer promise of David Beckham, won him the election. The Boixos Nois were almost immediately banned by Laporta after he became the president.
What does the future look like for Boixos Nois
Boixos Nois remains banned from attending home matches to date. While fans worldwide might want to see the ultras back in the stadium, there is a strong case for them to remain banned. The Ultra group is a far-right Neo-Nazi group that has fascists ideas. Their actions can not only hurt Barcelona through fines and bans by UEFA, but also through collapsing commercial deals. In my opinion, the club and Boixos Nois should sit together and negotiate because both need each other. The group should abandon their Nazi beliefs and focus more on representing the values of the club.
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