In an attempt to counter the threat of hooliganism, Germany's Interior Minister Otto Schily said this week that Germany could reimpose border controls for the 2006 World Cup. "If changes are needed we will consider them, including a reintroduction of (border) checks," Schily told reporters on the fringes of the Sport Accord conference on Monday. "We have the possibility under the Schengen agreement. Other countries have done it and if it is necessary we will not shy away from it." Germany is a signatory to the Schengen agreement, which abolished border checks between 15 European Union countries. Travelers from the other 14 Schengen countries are not normally required to show passports. The Portuguese government suspended Schengen for the duration of soccer's European Championship last year. Fears that fan violence could spoil the World Cup have risen sharply after German hooligans caused trouble before, during and after a recent friendly match away to Slovenia.