Albania has announced that UEFA has suspended Mirlind Daku for two matches due to nationalist chants. In their last draw 2-2 against Croatia at Euro 2024, Daku addressed his supporters with a megaphone leading the Albanian fans to derogatory chants in Hamburg. Both Croatian and Albanian fans engaged in derogatory chants.
Added to it, UEFA has fined the Albanian Federation a hefty amount of €25,000 for transmitting proactive nationalist messages in the game. The Croatian Federation was fined €28,000 due to fan misconduct, including setting off fireworks and invading the pitch. Amidst the chaos and outrage, Mirlind Daku has rushed over to social media to apologize for his actions.
UEFA has also launched an investigation for the misconduct of potential racist or discriminatory slurs. Serbia has threatened to pull itself out of the EURO 2024, following the exchange of offensive chanting between Albania and Croatia. Albania, Croatia, and Serbia each have one final group-stage match remaining this week.
UEFA’s official response to Serbia’s threat to leave EURO 2024
UEFA has given its official response regarding the outrage that occurred between the Croatian and Albanian fans in Hamburg. The Serbian Football Association has claimed that Croatian and Albanian fans chanted “Ubi, Ubi, Ubi, Srbina” [Kill, kill, kill the Serb] during the match on Wednesday.
Jovan Surbatovic, Serbian FA head has threatened UEFA to withdraw themselves from the competition, if UEFA fails to punish the alleged. Earlier this week, Serbia was charged by UEFA for fan incidents during their 1-0 loss to England. During the match, Serbian supporters produced a banner saying “transmitted a provocative message unfit for a sports event” and threw objects in Gelsenkirchen.
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