FOOTBALL fans are turning violent on their families during the World Cup as the police's worst fears come true.

England's 3-0 victory over Denmark was followed by 23 domestic violence incidents last Saturday and 23 on Sunday in the Eastern Division - covering Blackburn, Darwen, Hyndburn and the Ribble Valley.

A number of people have been arrested following the outbreak -- which doubled the normal number of cases -- but police believe many more incidents went unreported.

Today officers vowed to step up a campaign against people who turn to violence during the rest of the World Cup -- starting with England's quarter final clash with Brazil on Friday -- by using the power of arrest wherever possible.

And Viki Cuthbertson, chief executive officer with marriage guidance experts Relate in East Lancashire, said they were often approached by victims some weeks after the event and were expecting a surge in cases.

She added: "If figures are up we can expect a surge of people coming to us. Our advice is always, 'Don't put up with violence.' "

Figures show that there can be between six and 15 reported incidents on a normal day.

England's match with Sweden resulted in 15 reports, Argentina 14 and Nigeria six.

On average, in Lancashire last year there were about 46 reports each day and more than 16,000 people were involved in incidents.

Domestic violence includes physical, sexual, psychological, emotional or financial abuse against a current or former partner or family member.

Chief Insp Steven Gregson, head of community safety for the Eastern Division, said people should not worry that police will fail to act and dismiss incidents as a "domestic."

He added: "Domestic violence will not be tolerated by the police and we are taking positive action against offenders."

Police will also be continuing to place posters reminding victims how to report the incidents.

"Whilst the increase is unacceptable," said Chief Insp Gregson, "It was not unexpected as there tends to be an increase in domestic violence during large sporting events. That's the reason we are focusing our efforts on tackling domestic violence in June."

Police mounted a campaign against domestic violence in the run up to the World Cup. They warned that the cocktail of charged emotions, alcohol and relatives coming together could cause a rise in the number of assaults.

Previous holiday periods or sporting events have caused a sharp rise. Football's Euro 2000 Championships caused 194 incidents of domestic violence in the police's Eastern Division. In July after the tournament, there were 149 incidents.

Linda Thompson, project manager with Women's Aid in Blackburn, said they were always available to help victims. "There are many, many issues other than football affecting domestic violence -- often relating to poverty. If you can't pay the bills it throws up all sorts of stresses," she said.