Killing a cop tends to offset winning the World Cup

Slate's Robert Weintraub has an interesting take on why Italian soccer is unlikely to undergo the same resurgence as the English game a few decades ago.

There's also a fundamental difference between the hooliganism in Italy and England. The U.K. version is essentially gang warfare—where you are from and the colors you're wearing are all-important. English violence is fighting for the sake of fighting, not for any particular cause other than pub glory and bragging rights.

The Italian ultras (the catch-all phrase for rowdy fan groups) are politically motivated. They're often aligned with a particular movement, be it communist, fascist, or center-right. The political parties and the clubs are commingled to the extent that it's difficult to tell where one begins and the other ends—since most Italian teams are publicly held and traded, the ultras often literally own the clubs.