About the FSI - Fans' Embassy department

The current core organisations of the FSI fans' embassy department have been active in their own countries at various levels mostly for years, and each has their own distinct methodology. There are clear differences in terms of reference and approach, for example between the social workers of the German fan projects, and the independent, membership based campaigning FSF from England. There are even differences of emphasis and approach in terms of day-to-day practise between the fan project social workers of different countries.

 But finally they are all united by their principles ( see Self-Conception) and a basic commitment to and support of football supporters’ interests which they put into practice on various levels.

The current core organisations of the FSI are the:

• Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) in England
• Fan Project Coordination Centre (KOS) in Germany
• Progetto Ultrà in Italy
• FACH in Switzerland

The Football Supporters Federation, ENGLAND The Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) is the united, national, campaigning and informing supporters’ organisation in England and Wales, with an individual and affiliated membership of over 130.000 fans. It is also the biggest independent and main representative body for football supporters in the United Kingdom as well as for fans’ liaison with governmental, police and football authorities in the United Kingdom.

The FSF, and its forerunner FSA, has been running Fans’ Embassy services for travelling England fans since Italia ’90, and is now represented at every England game, home and away. Supported by both the British government and commercial sponsors, the FSF produces an England fanzine ‘Free Lions’. Since 2003, the FSF has also begun to offer a fans’ embassy service to fans of the Wales national team.

Contact details & Website

Fan Project Coordination Centre KOS, GERMANY Within the framework of the ‘National Concept for Sports and Security’, the Fan Project Coordination Centre KOS (Koordinationsstelle Fan-Projekte) at the German Sports Youth gives advice and offers support services for German fan projects that act on a club-based level. Furthermore, the KOS performs an advisory function towards institutions such as the German Football Association (DFB), German Football League (DFL), the World Championship 2006 Committee (WM-Organisations Komitee 2006) and the police with regard to professional pedagogical fan coaching.

The KOS’ main responsibilities are to support existing and to establish new fan projects; monitoring of the fan projects and providing advanced training for members of staff in the projects. Up to now the KOS is in charge of 35 active fan projects, the existence of which underlines the level of official appreciation of this successful pedagogical work. The KOS has also been running Fans’ Embassies services for travelling fans since Sweden 1992.

Contact details & Website

Progetto Ultrà, ITALY Created in 1995, Progetto Ultrà is an organisation intent on defending and promoting football’s fan culture. Aside from managing the Football Fan Archive – a unique resource detailing Italian football culture from the fans’ perspective - Progetto Ultrà is one of the main organisers of the annual antiracist football fans’ worldcup Mondiali Antirazzisti. On top of that, it promotes various other initiatives that aim at reducing violence and getting supporters involved with community projects in their neighbourhoods.

Contact details & Website 

FaCH, SWITZERLAND Founded in 2005, to succeed the successful proFAN organisation, the association educates both present and future fan-workers. In collaboration with the Swiss Football League, FaCH has also established training schemes for the fan-related members of staff at the League itself and has liaised extensively with the Swiss Railway Association in setting up escorted travel schemes, both for fans travelling to and from club matches all over Switzerland, and supporters of the Swiss national team. FaCH has already organised Fans’ Embassies around matchdays of the Swiss national team both during tournaments, like at the Euro2004 or 2006 World Cup and at single matches. FaCH has been appointed member of several national work units on fan coaching in football and ice hockey.

Contact details & Website