What's green, white and red-faced? Every Beijing Guo'an supporter this week.

Just when Chinese soccer seemed to be clawing back some credibility by jailing a slew of corrupt former national league officials and ex-national team players and executives, it scored an own goal off the pitch with another ugly problem - hooliganism.

The latest offenders are fans of the Beijing Guo'an soccer club, many of whom were allegedly arrested after smashing a car belonging to a Tianjin resident following their Chinese Super League (CSL) match on Saturday night.

Rowdy fan behavior and violence between rival supporters is a common scourge on soccer worldwide, with recent clashes between Russian and Polish fans at the ongoing Euro 2012 tournament serving as a stern reminder. What's more disturbing is that Chinese sport, which once beckoned fans to its family-friendly atmosphere, is embracing an uglier side.

There's no doubt that supporters pouring out of the Workers' Stadium felt riled by Guo'an's lackluster scoreless draw at home, to CSL cellar-dwellers Qingdao Zhongneng. Given the fresh scars from match-fixing that have tarnished the sport, you could forgive cynical fans for suspecting perhaps players weren't giving it their all on the field.

But for the male driver and his female companion trapped inside the car - littered with bottles and cans, its paintwork scratched and windows smashed - it would have been a terrifying ordeal and one that was thankfully spared a grimmer outcome.

How violence could ensue in one of the most densely populated parts of Beijing, despite the sizable contingent of soldiers, riot police and their dogs outside the stadium after the game, is cause for scrutiny. If they are only tasked with upholding security within the stadium compound, then their presence is little more than an intimidating façade.

Beijingers take pride in all their sports teams that compete on a national level, but it's no secret soccer holds pride of place in fans' hearts. There are few experiences that make the hair stand on the back of your neck like being amid a sea of 40,000 supporters dressed in green and white at the Workers' Stadium on a Saturday night.

The roar of fans riding every emotion from kickoff to the final whistle is palpable. It's impossible to resist being swept up in the cheers, the chants and Chinese profanities directed at referees and the visiting team, and the chest-reverberating boos that ensure a hoarse voice for the rest of the night. 

The adrenaline is enough to make you forget you paid nearly 200 yuan ($31.40) to sit on a filthy sheet of newspaper covering a hard concrete bench in an arena where alcohol is as rare as fans sitting in their ticketed seats.

When such an emotional investment in the home team isn't rewarded with victory, but with a goalless display of what amounts to park soccer, it's understandable fans feel cheated.

The CSL has made earnest efforts to reconcile with scorned fans by cleaning out its former corrupt administrators and spending big to lure marquee stars of the game from abroad. French star Nicolas Anelka signed with Shanghai Shenhua in January, with speculation rife he will be joined soon by outgoing Chelsea striker Didier Drogba.

Chinese soccer has become so preoccupied with throwing cash at aging star players to revive the sport, that it has forgotten the real stars of the game - its family fan base. They, along with the vast majority of well-behaved supporters, are the people the CSL needs to woo, otherwise the league risks spiraling into a weekend pastime for thugs looking to wreak havoc.