Jonny Pickup

Europe is seeing a clandestine emergence of illegal underground "No Rules" fight clubs: no rules, no rounds, no gloves. Young men are risking life and limb at these hidden events, which allow everything from biting and head-butting to eye-gouging and neck stamping. This world is one of unfiltered ultraviolence and raw instinct. Away Days got special access into this scene. We spent three years attending hidden brawls all over Europe to document what is one of the most authentic new countercultures on earth.

Heavy Weekend 01: Underground “no rules” fight clubs are spreading fast across Europe, organised in secret and hidden from the authorities. No tickets, no spectators, no public locations. This isn’t bare-knuckle boxing. Eye-gouging, biting, stamping, head-butts and choking are all allowed. It’s not sport—it’s organised ultraviolence. Hanrahan attends one of the UK’s first no-rules fight clubs to find out why young men are risking it all on the concrete.

The Islamic country of Kazakhstan is one of the most unlikely places for football hooliganism to take root. And yet, believe it or not, the scene there is growing rapidly. Born from Aktobe’s “13 Sector”, these crews mix British hooliganism, European ultras culture, and ancient Kazakh tradition to create a unique, fully-formed underground counterculture. Forest fights, street patrols, fanaticism—a new scene thriving 3000 miles away from where it all began. Away Days got unprecedented access to these hooligans, travelling all the way to Kazakhstan to meet them. We followed the region’s most notorious firm in the lead-up to the biggest derby of the year…

Brazil's "Red Command" drug cartel is considered a plague by the government. But for the people of the favelas they control, Red Command *is* the government. They’re the de facto leadership of the area. The gang has taken over the role of the authorities in their shanty towns, where the state has long abandoned them. Away Days got special access to the Rio favelas, hanging out out with young foot-soldiers, speaking to commanders, and seeing how civilians live between the gangs and the equally violent police militias.