NEO-NAZIS from Britain and the rest of Europe will attempt to exploit any violent incidents at Euro '96 to spread their creed of race hate.

Extreme right wing groups have traditionally used football as a recruiting ground for their organisations.

Some Bolton soccer yobs involved in a massive trial in 1990 were found to have links with far right groups and carried out attacks on the local Asian community. Bolton thugs were also involved in the violence which erupted in Dublin during the friendly match which had to be abandoned because of the rioting. Local skinheads were openly boasting they had been paid £100 each by right wing extremists to start trouble.

The neo Nazi terror group Combat 18 have a strong presence among Wigan and Oldham thugs according to hooligan expert and anti-racist campaigner Peter Brighton.

Elsewhere in Europe, racism has also been one of the features characterising soccer violence.

When Germany played Holland recently racist chants and slogans figured prominently alongside violence. English and foreign extremists have a common goal of causing as much disruption as possible and launching attacks on ethnic communities. In the run up to the cancelled match between England and Germany last year on Hitler's birthday, German and English Nazis had planned to attack the local Turkish community.

But Mr Brighton believes that such an alliance would be unthinkable because it would not be acceptable to the majority of English yobs.

Mr Brighton said: "German and English Nazis would love to link up but they are a minority of a minority and it won't happen. That is because the vast majority of English hooligans don't want that and most Germans will want to get the English."

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