Saturday 10th July 2021
English association has to pay
Mild punishment for “hideous” laser attack
England was mad at the laser “idiots” in the semi-final game against Denmark. UEFA imposes a fine. Meanwhile, national coach Gareth Southgate revives outdated narrative structures: The Second World War was the incentive for the 2-0 victory against Germany.
The English association FA got away with a rather mild penalty after the misconduct of some fans in the semi-finals of the European Football Championship against Denmark. The European Football Union UEFA imposed a fine of 30,000 euros. The use of a laser pointer by spectators, interference by fans while the Danish national anthem was being played and fireworks were all punished. England plays on Sunday (9 p.m. / ZDF, Magenta TV and in the live ticker on ntv.de) again at Wembley in the final against Italy.
It was still unclear what the results of the British police investigation would be. The British Secretary of State Susan Williams announced this in Parliament in London on Thursday. She described the incident in which Denmark’s goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel was shone in the face with a green laser pointer during a penalty kick in the semi-finals last Wednesday as “hideous”.
The memories of the war drove England against Germany
Incidents with the anthems had already occurred in previous games. Before England’s round of 16 against Germany, whistles and boos were heard during the anthems. A victory in which, according to England coach Gareth Southgate, memories of war played a role. “People also tried to invade us, and we had the courage to defend ourselves against it. You can’t hide the fact that the energy in the stadium against Germany partly came from this,” said the 50-year-old at the Three Lions’ EM base camp British journalists in Burton upon Trent.
The English had defeated the DFB selection in the round of 16 with 2-0 and thus for the first time in 55 years in a knockout game of a major tournament. “I never mentioned it to the players, but I know it played a role,” Southgate said, referring to war memories.
Before the European Championship final against Italy on Sunday, the coach also appealed generally to the national pride of his compatriots. “We have so much to be proud of. For an island our size, we have an incredible impact on the world and we have to maintain that in a positive way,” said Southgate. He now wants to finish the tournament with the title. “Because I know that if we don’t win it now, it won’t be enough for me and the rest of the staff and the players.”
.