Serbia have threatened to quit Euro 2024 if European football’s governing body UEFA fails to punish Albania and Croatia for anti-Serb chants made by their fans during their 2-2 draw on Wednesday.
According to the Football Association of Serbia (FSS), both sets of fans chanted “Kill, kill, kill the Serb” in the second half of the Group B match in Hamburg.
Speaking to Serbian state broadcaster RTS, FSS general secretary Jovan Surbatovic said: “What happened is scandalous and we will ask UEFA for sanctions, even if it means not continuing the competition.
“We are sure they will be punished, because (UEFA) has already responded to our appeal to remove the so-called journalist from Albania from the championship.
“We will demand that UEFA punish both federations. We do not want to participate in that but, if UEFA does not punish them, we will think how we will proceed.”
His comment about the “so-called journalist from Albania” is a reference to a TV reporter from Kosovo who was seen making the double-headed eagle sign towards Serbian fans during their game against England on Sunday.
The gesture, which is made with crossed hands, represents the flag of Greater Albania and has been a source of tension between Albanians and Serbs ever since the break-up of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. The reporter has been banned from working at the tournament for “misconduct”.
The Albanian FA has also already been fined almost £32,000 by UEFA for the poor behaviour of their fans during their opening game against Italy. The governing body punished them for throwing objects onto the pitch, lighting fireworks, a pitch invasion and “transmitting a provocative message not fit for a sporting event”.
Albania have already been fined almost £32,000 by UEFA for the poor behaviour of their fans (Photo by Sergei Mikhailichenko/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Serbia, however, have also already been sanctioned by UEFA, receiving a fine of just over £12,000 for their fans’ behaviour during the game against England in Gelsenkirchen. They, too, were punished for a “provocative message”, in this case a banner stating Serbia’s historic claim over the predominantly Albanian republic of Kosovo.
Seven Serbian fans were also arrested by police after clashing with their England counterparts before that match, which England won 1-0, and an investigation has been opened by UEFA into reports of racist chanting by Serbian supporters during the game.
Surbatovic tried to downplay these incidents in his interview with RTS, saying: “We were punished for isolated cases and our fans behaved much better than the others.
“One fan was punished for racist insults and we don’t want it to be attributed to others. We Serbs are gentleman and we have an open heart, so I appeal to the fans to remain gentlemen.”
The Croatian Football Federations says they are not aware of any racist or discriminatory chants from Croatia fans during the Albania game.
Serbia play Slovenia in their second Group C match in Munich on Thursday.
The FSS and UEFA have been contacted for comment.
(Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)