Dutch Euro 2012 squad caught up in row over racist chanting

The Dutch squad at the Euro 2012 football championships have been caught up in a row over racist chanting by Polish fans during a training session, but Uefa is not planning to take any action, according to media reports on Friday.


The Telegraaf said earlier this week the Dutch squad had been subjected to ‘jungle noises’ during a training session in Krakow, forcing them to move to another part of the pitch. The incident followed a visit by the team, which includes several black players, to the Auschwitz concentration camp.
‘It is a real disgrace, especially after getting back from Auschwitz to be confronted with this,’ the Daily Mail quoted Van Bommel as saying. ‘We will take it up with (European football’s governing body) Uefa and, if it happens at matches, we will talk to the referee and ask him to take us off the field.’
According to Scotland’s Daily Record, Uefa confirmed on Friday morning they had ‘no plans’ to launch a probe into events at the stadium and the Dutch football association had told them they ‘did not believe the abuse was racially motivated’.
No formal complaint
Piara Powar, of the Football Against Racism in Europe organisation, told the paper Van Bommel has nothing to gain from making up the claim. ‘We would side with Van Bommel. It’s quite clear it happened,’ Powar said.
According to the BBC, Uefa has had no formal complaint from the KNVB and the KNVB told BBC Sport the issue is now considered closed.
But the Telegraph newspaper said Uefa later issued a statement saying they had been made aware of ‘isolated incidents of racist chanting’.
UEFA president Michel Platini said earlier players who walk off the pitch without the referee’s say so will get an automatic yellow card.

Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.

We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.

Make a donation