This research aimed to characterize young members of Brazilian organized football fan groups (torcidas organizadas) considering their age, education level, marital status and family organization. We also aimed to describe and analyze their perception of violence in football, as well as their perception of the relationship between such violence and sports media. To achieve these goals, we adopted a methodology that is both quantitative and qualitative, combining bibliographic, documental and field research. Among other things, the results suggest that many generalizations made by the media about those fans do not find empirical support.223693705