The Suicide Squad was a notorious football hooligan firm associated with Burnley Football Club. Their name, self-imposed, came from their behaviour at away games, where they often faced overwhelming odds in violent clashes. This single-minded approach, seen as almost suicidal, quickly became their trademark during the early 1980s.
Rise of the Suicide Squad
The firm emerged in the 1980s, a turbulent time when Burnley F.C. slipped from the First Division to the Fourth Division and even risked relegation to non-league football. Despite the club’s decline, the Suicide Squad built a fierce reputation. They operated with discipline, organisation, and calculation—qualities that made them one of the most feared hooligan firms in Britain.
Their main rivalries were with Blackburn Rovers, Millwall, Plymouth Argyle, Preston North End, Stoke City, and Bolton Wanderers. Clashes with these firms cemented the Suicide Squad’s infamy across the country. Even as the original group began to fade, a younger and more violent faction emerged: the Burnley Youth. This new generation remained linked to the Suicide Squad but rejected the traditional “rules” of hooliganism. Police intelligence reports suggested they were increasingly out of control—travelling to away matches armed and more determined than their predecessors.
Concerned older members warned that Burnley Youth were escalating violence beyond anything seen before, leaving the authorities facing an even greater challenge.
In November 2002, Burnley police and the football club launched Operation Fixture, a crackdown on hooliganism at Turf Moor and surrounding areas. The initiative led to more arrests, banning orders, and convictions. It also targeted racism, highlighted by the arrest of a Burnley fan who performed a Nazi salute during a League Cup clash with Tottenham Hotspur.
Tragically, on 7 December 2002, violence spiralled out of control when a 17-year-old Nottingham Forest fan was killed in Burnley town centre after an attack by Burnley supporters. Days later, 19-year-old Burnley fan Andrew McNee, linked to the so-called Suicide Youth Squad, was arrested and charged. He later pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to seven years in youth custody, alongside a ten-year banning order.
The Suicide Squad remained active into the 2000s, with founding members such as Andrew Porter and Philip Holmes repeatedly receiving banning orders for their involvement in clashes. Porter even published a book, Suicide Squad: The Inside Story of a Football Firm, detailing his experiences within the group.
On 18 October 2009, Burnley faced Blackburn Rovers in their first-ever Premier League derby. What followed was a violent riot at the Station pub in Blackburn, described by police as “like something out of Braveheart.” The fallout was huge: in January 2011, twelve members of the Suicide Squad were jailed, receiving a combined 32 years in prison along with lengthy banning orders. Porter, who organised the riot, was handed a five-year sentence and a ten-year ban.
After these convictions, the Suicide Squad officially disbanded in 2011, marking the end of one of England’s most infamous football firms. The Suicide Squad’s legacy lives on in the history of football hooliganism in England. They were featured in the popular documentary series The Real Football Factories, which brought their story to a wider audience.
Though officially disbanded, their reputation remains etched into the culture of Burnley supporters and the darker side of football fandom. The rise of Burnley Youth and the violent episodes of the 2000s proved that while the original Suicide Squad may have ended, the mentality they embodied left a lasting mark on English football.