Silent Night

When London's West Ham United lost 3-1 to Madrid's Castilla last month, the English soccer team's unruly fans urinated and spat on Spanish supporters, pelted the field with beer cans and fought with local police. To show that it would no longer put up with such antics, which are fast becoming a fixture of soccer matches, the European Football Union levied the penultimate penalty: West Ham would have to play its home game to an empty house. Last week the two teams played an evening match before a genteel throng of 200 or so officials and journalists in Upton Park stadium, which can hold nearly 40,000. "It was a strange experience," said West Ham Forward David Cross. "Whenever I scored, I had to look at the referee to be sure he'd given the goal. Normally the crowd's roar is enough." West Ham won the match, quietly, 5-1.

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