ATHENS – Unable to stop hooligan violence – amid reports soccer team fan clubs are allegedly tied to management in some cases – Greece will bring in the National Intelligence Service (EYP) and counter-terrorist police to help.

That’s part of a new strategy, eight months after Deputy Sports Minister Giannis Vroutsis said measures were aimed at “low-level” sports violence instead, although there’s been little attempt to keep fans from bringing weapons into games.

That includes flares that light up the stands, no report whether there were security checks at entrance gates and repeated attacks between hooligans in the stands during games and overwhelming police trying to stop it.

There were plans for mandatory electronic security systems for Super League and Basket League stadiums, and fines ranging up to 100,000 euros ($111,674) for what was deemed lesser violence, no report whether anything was actually done.

The government now is moving toward getting tougher – there have been various brief crackdowns that largely failed to stop the violence, fans being a big voting base – with what Kathimerini said is called Kallipatera, a 200-page scheme.

That was created by the police (ELAS) over a five-month period and due to be implemented imminently, the report said, and will have a Joint Intelligence Force that will also include the cybercrime unit.

It was said that fans who were considered high-risk – no definition was given although there are hundreds of hooligans – would be under surveillance over their social media postings as well as scrutinized.

Police officials told the paper the plan came about because of the death of a police officer who died after being struck with a flare while trying to help quell violence outside an arena where a volleyball game was being played.

Stricter laws were passed in Parliament in February and cameras were installed in stadiums hosting major league matches and fans have to show identity cards as part of yet another attempt to rein in the troublemakers.

In April, prosecutors put together a case they said showed how Olympiakos hooligans supporting their team’s volleyball club orchestrated attacks on riot police that led to the officer dying from injuries.