German court says it’s OK to charge clubs for extra policing

LEIPZIG, Germany (AP) — A German federal court has ruled that authorities can in principle bill soccer clubs for the extra cost of policing high-risk matches.

The Federal Administrative Court has ruled in a case pitting the state of Bremen against the German soccer league. Four years ago, Bremen sent the league a 425,000 euro ($478,000) bill for extra officers deployed around a Bundesliga match between Werder Bremen and Hamburger SV. The clubs are regional rivals.

The league argued that soccer didn’t initiate violence and keeping order was the job of the state.

Federal judges said it’s justifiable for organizers to be charged for significant extra police work caused by “a commercial high-risk event.” But they referred the specific case back to a Bremen court for a new ruling.