Wednesday June 23, 2021
“Not a political symbol”
UEFA changes logo to rainbow colors
After the increasing criticism, UEFA has announced a turnaround: the rainbow is “not a political symbol”. That doesn’t change anything about the decision to ban the Munich arena. Stadiums are also illuminated in Hungary – albeit differently than in Germany.
The European Football Union (UEFA) has defended its decision against rainbow lighting at the Munich European Championship arena and enhanced its logo with the colors of the rainbow. “Some” have interpreted this “as political”, announced the umbrella organization. “On the contrary, the request itself was political and linked to the presence of the Hungarian national team in the stadium for the game against Germany that evening.” For UEFA, the rainbow is “not a political symbol, but a sign of our commitment to a more diverse and inclusive society”.
On Tuesday, UEFA rejected the city of Munich’s request to have the FC Bayern arena shine in rainbow colors for the final preliminary round match on Wednesday and was then massively criticized. The background to the motion is a law that restricts young people’s right to information about homosexuality and transsexuality in Hungary and was approved by the Hungarian parliament last week. The rainbow flag stands as a symbol for the acceptance and equality of people who do not identify with the traditional roles of men and women or other norms relating to gender and sexuality.
Clubs in Hungary start counter-action
While the UEFA decision has been widely criticized in most countries, there is a different tone to be heard in Hungary, the country against which the Munich stadium lighting was ultimately supposed to be directed. Several Hungarian clubs want to illuminate their stadiums in their national colors during the European Championship match between Hungary and Germany. Gabor Kubatov, President of Hungary’s largest club Ferencvaros, called on the clubs to take part in this campaign via Facebook. “Let’s color all the stadiums red-white-green! Home above all!” Wrote Kubatov, who is also the vice-president of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling Fidesz party. According to Kubatov, the initiative goes back to an ultra group of Ferencvaros who complained about the “provocative news” during the rainbow lighting in Munich. The campaign has so far been joined by MTK Budapest and DVSC from Debrecen, whose management is also in contact with Fidesz politicians.
The lighting ban applies exclusively to the Munich stadium, which UEFA has at its disposal during the European Championship. After the ban on the Allianz Arena, other landmarks in the Bavarian capital and numerous stadiums across Germany announced that they would use rainbow lighting during the game instead.
But the dispute with UEFA does not meet with approval in all of Germany. The city of Stuttgart has now kept its distance in the debate. “With the European Championship, UEFA wants to” build bridges, unite organizers, “” said Stuttgart Mayor Frank Nopper on Twitter. “So it is better not to receive the Hungarian national team with a rainbow message.” The city will send such a message to the Hungarian government on Christopher Street Day in July, a city hall spokesman announced. Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil, on the other hand, welcomed the actions of numerous clubs in his state.
Worldwide fuss, concern about fans
The UEFA ban has caused a stir around the world. The Spanish sports newspaper “Marca” changed its logo for today’s issue and appeared with a rainbow-colored lettering. Georgino Wijnaldum, the captain of the Dutch selection, will wear a special armband with the words “One Love” on his arm during the European Championship round of 16 in Budapest next Sunday. “We are against all forms of exclusion and discrimination. We hope in this way to support everyone who feels discriminated against anywhere in the world,” said Wijnaldum.
Meanwhile, the Munich police were concerned about “around 200 members of more problematic fan associations” who were expected from Hungary. 1500 officers were on duty. “If we discover violations before, during or after the game, especially in the case of racist or homophobic statements, we will prevent them and take consistent action against the perpetrators,” the police had announced. In the previous two games of the Hungarians in Budapest (0: 3 against Portugal and 1: 1 against France) the notorious “Carpathian Brigade” appeared. The black-clad mob is believed by experts to be a paramilitary group made up of neo-Nazis. Last Sunday, UEFA announced a review of allegations of racism and homophobia against fans in the Budapest stadium at previous games. So far, this review has not yielded any results.
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