List of Violent Spectator Incidents in Sports - 1974

1974

• May 18 – "The Battle Of Windy Hill" - During a VFL match between Essendon and Richmond at Windy Hill, Richmond's Mal Brown clashed with Essendon's badly out of form Graeme Jenkin as the teams moved towards the locker rooms at the half-time siren; after Essendon runner Laurie Ashley went out of his way to confront and abuse Brown, Brown struck Ashley, starting a 15 minute bench-clearing brawl that involved players, team officials, trainers, fans, and police. Richmond's Brian Roberts was left with a broken nose, while Essendon trainer Jim Bradley and a fan were both knocked unconscious and had to be carried from the arena on stretchers. Six players and team officials (including Ashley and Brown) were suspended for a total of 40 matches by the VFL.

• June 4 – "Ten Cent Beer Night" – For a game between the Cleveland Indians and the Texas Rangers at the Cleveland Municipal Stadium, fans were served as many 10-ounce cups of beer as they wanted for 10¢ each. After numerous instances of drunk fans being involved in debris throwing, running onto the field or streaking, the situation boiled over in the 9th inning when a fan ran onto the field and snatched Rangers outfielder Jeff Burroughs' cap and glove. Burroughs' teammates charged out to his aid, followed by hundreds of Cleveland fans who poured onto the field; in the ensuing chaos, Indians manager Ken Aspromonte ordered his players to grab bats and protect the Rangers from their own fans, Rangers manager Billy Martin grabbed a bat and ran into the crowd, Rangers pitcher Tom Hilgendorf was hit in the back of the head with a metal chair, and chief umpire Nestor Chylak was hit in the head with a chair thrown from the stands. Nine people were arrested, and the game was forfeited to Texas.