hooliganism

noun

hoo·​li·​gan·​ism ˈhü-li-gə-ˌni-zəm 

: rowdy, violent, or destructive behavior

Examples of hooliganism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While hooliganism and fan violence were a big issue in the 1980s and 90s, incidents gradually declined until today where English fans largely have a much better reputation abroad. — Patrick Sung Cuadrado, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2026

Robson was United’s best player of the 1980s at a time when crowds were down and the sport was blighted by hooliganism. — Andy Mitten, New York Times, 12 Aug. 2026

With hooliganism rife in English soccer in the 1980s, a narrative blaming drunken, ticketless and rowdy Liverpool fans was created by police, and was only overturned by years of campaigning by victims’ families. — ABC News, 14 July 2026

English soccer fans have earned a reputation for violent hooliganism, hurling plastic chairs and brawling their way across the piazzas and boulevards of Europe. — Alexander Smith, NBC news, 3 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1894, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hooliganism

• activism
• albinism
• altruism
• aneurism
• animism
• aphorism
• atomism
• barbarism
• bolshevism
• botulism
• brahmanism
• calvinism