UEFA is investigating Turkey’s Merih Demiral after he made a gesture with far-right connotations while scoring a goal in Tuesday’s Euro 2024 victory over Austria.
Demiral gave a “wolf” salute with his hands after scoring his second goal in Turkey’s 2-1 victory over Austria to book their place in the quarter-finals and set up the match against the Netherlands on Saturday. This gesture is associated with the Gray Wolves, a far-right nationalist group based in Türkiye. The group was banned in France and the gesture made by Demiral was banned in Austria – where it is punishable by fines of up to 4,000 euros.
“An investigation has been opened in accordance with article 31(4) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations in relation to the alleged inappropriate behavior of Turkish Football Federation player Merih Demiral,” UEFA said in a statement. “More information on this matter will be made available in due course.”
If it chooses to punish Demiral, UEFA could fine or suspend him. FIFA fined two Swiss players for making a similar gesture during a World Cup match in 2018. Demiral was among a group of Turkish players reprimanded in 2019 after making military-style gestures at games while the country was conducting military operations in Syria. also.
Demiral was asked about the gesture after the match and said he already had it in mind before scoring. The gesture, he insisted, was “quite normal.”
“It has to do with this Turkish identity, because I am very proud to be Turkish. And I felt that to the fullest after the second goal. So that’s how I ended up making this gesture. I’m very happy I did it,” said Demiral, via Associated Press. “I saw people in the stadium making that sign. So that reminded me that I had that in mind too.”
The gesture is not banned in Germany, where Euro 2024 is taking place, but it still drew harsh condemnation from the country’s Interior Minister, Nancy Faeser, on social media. Faeser also said that the Gray Wolves are currently under surveillance by the German government.
Die Symbole türkischer Rechtsextremisten haben in unseren Stadien nichts zu suchen. Fußball-Europameisterschaft as a platform for Rassismus zu nutzen, is very inakzeptabel. Wir erwarten, dass die UEFA den Fall untersucht und Sanktionen prüft.https://t.co/65yoSUAAQJ
-Nancy Faeser (@NancyFaeser) July 3, 2024
“The symbols of Turkish right-wing extremists have no place in our stadiums,” she wrote in German on X. “Using the European Football Championship as a platform for racism is completely unacceptable. We hope that UEFA will investigate the case and consider sanctions.”
Faeser’s comments prompted Turkey to recall the German ambassador on Wednesday in protest, according to the Associated Press.
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