Croatian police investigate antisemitic chants before Hajduk Split–Ajax match

Croatian police are investigating antisemitic chants by Hajduk Split supporters before the club’s UEFA Conference League match against Ajax in Split on Thursday, 15 October. Police told BBC Sport on Friday that arrests had been made and that they were seeking further people they had identified, as Croatian leaders condemned the incident.

BBC Sport reported that footage published online showed supporters chanting about Auschwitz and in support of Adolf Hitler outside the stadium. AFP, citing local media, reported that Torcida supporters marched through Split chanting antisemitic and pro-Nazi slogans. The exact number of people arrested was not stated.

Police investigation and Croatian response

President Zoran Milanović called the incident ‘unacceptable and shameful’ in a Friday statement, according to AFP. He urged swift action against those responsible to show that glorification of Nazism and the Ustasha ideology has no place in Croatia. AFP also reported that Prime Minister Andrej Plenković condemned the antisemitic messages and that Israel’s embassy in Zagreb said it was deeply shocked.

Croatia’s ombudswoman Tena Šimonović Einwalter, an independent official appointed by parliament to safeguard human rights, called the incident a ‘manifestation of hatred and intolerance’, BBC Sport reported. The Croatian government condemned chants it described as glorifying the Nazi regime.

What happened during the Hajduk–Ajax match

BBC Sport described a supporters’ march led by a yellow car carrying a coffin marked ‘Ajax’. The Amsterdam club has a historical association with the Jewish community. Hajduk won the match 2–1, but fireworks set off in the stands halted play for about 10 minutes, both reports said.

Hajduk apologised after the match to the competition organiser and to Ajax’s management and players for scenes it said it did not want Europe to remember. BBC Sport noted that the club’s apology did not specifically mention the antisemitic chanting. UEFA can act over incidents in the stands or stadium precinct, but has no jurisdiction over incidents away from the stadium, according to BBC Sport.

Croatian football has faced sanctions over discriminatory behaviour before. In 2015, the Croatian Football Federation apologised after a swastika was marked on the pitch in Split before a Euro 2016 qualifier against Italy; UEFA docked Croatia a point, AFP reported. BBC Sport said Croatia’s Nations League match against England earlier this month was played under a stadium ban imposed after discriminatory behaviour by supporters against France last year, although children and accompanying adults were permitted to attend.