FOOTBALL fever saw domestic violence rocket in Bolton by up to 30 per cent last month, new figures revealed.

While a wave of enthusiasm swept the country during last month's Euro 2004 Championships, a sinister side-effect saw violence in the home increase by almost one third.

Several victims of domestic violence were treated in hospital for minor injuries, cuts and bruises, but none were seriously hurt.

And "alcohol and raised spirits" were today blamed for the increase, which left police dealing with more than 600 disturbances during the five-week championship.

As a result of those figures, police chiefs have revealed domestic violence officers will be on duty in the town in future during high-profile Bolton Wanderers games.

Overall, there was a 25 per cent rise in domestic violence in Euro 2004, but during the two weekend England beat Croatia and Switzerland, that figure rose to 30 per cent. Even though England were knocked out by Portugal in the quarter finals, the high level of calls continued to pour in.

A crackdown was launched by Bolton Police throughout the championship to support victims of abuse.

Officers specially trained to deal with domestic violence attended all incidents with investigating officers.

They used cameras to photograph injuries and help victims make statements, improving the chance of the case proceeding through the courts. Arrests were made at more than 80 per cent of the disturbances as part of the Operation Homesafe.

Sgt Jo Lally from Bolton Police's Domestic Violence Unit said:

"Traditionally, people drink while they are watching the matchess, whether it is at home or in the pub, and that can lead to problems.

"In the future, we are going to make sure we have domestic violence officers on duty during high profile Bolton Wanderers games or other sporting events because of the rise in incidents."