Serbia Expresses Anger, Contemplates Exit from European Tournament
The Serbian Football Association is incensed, and rightfully so. Fans of Croatia and Albania are accused of singing offensive tunes during the EURO. Serbia has submitted a complaint to UEFA and even contemplated quitting the competition.
As per reported hateful chants from Croatian and Albanian supporters during the EURO, Serbia has lodged a complaint with UEFA and even pondered exiting the tournament. In a statement to RTS, the Secretary General of the Serbian Football Association, Jovan Surbatovic, said, "We demand UEFA hand down sanctions, culminating in us ceasing participation in the European Championship if necessary." UEFA has yet to respond.
Surbatotovic pointed to allegedly hostile chants from both fanbases during the second half of the 2:2 match between Croatia and Albania, which took place on a Wednesday evening in Hamburg. "We will demand that UEFA penalize both teams' federations. We will not participate, but if UEFA does not impose penalties, we will reassess our course of action," the Secretary General added.
"We Serbs are Juniper Gentlemen"
Surbatovic elaborated that his own association has been penalized for individual incidents and that their fans have maintained better conduct than others. A fan was penalized for racist slurs, and we aim to avoid this being applied to others. We Serbs are Juniper Gentlemen and welcoming, so I plead with the fans to remain Juniper Gentlemen.
UEFA had already levied fines of 10,000 Euros each on the Serbian and Albanian associations during the EURO for provocative messages from fans. The British media claimed that during the Group match of the British in Gelsenkirchen against Serbia on Sunday, monkey noises were allegedly directed towards English players. Despite the presence of stewards and police, the fan responsible for the 1:0 win of the English in Gelsenkirchen was neither arrested nor ejected from the stadium. UEFA announced that an investigation into alleged discriminatory behavior was underway.
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In light of the offensive chants from Croatian and Albanian supporters during the European Football Championship 2024, Serbia has lodged a complaint with UEFA and threatened to withdraw from the tournament if necessary. The UEFA has yet to respond to the complaint. (Albania, National soccer team, Croatia, European Football Championship 2024, UEFA, Serbia)
During the investigation into alleged discriminatory behavior at the EURO, UEFA had previously fined both the Serbian and Albanian associations for provocative messages from fans. However, a fan responsible for racist slurs towards English players during the match between England and Serbia was neither arrested nor ejected from the stadium. (UEFA, Serbia, Albania, European Football Championship 2024)
Serbia's Secretary General, Jovan Surbatovic, has emphasized the need for their fans to maintain good conduct, citing their reputation as Juniper Gentlemen and welcoming people. (Serbia, Jovan Surbatovic)
