Serbian flags and anti-Kosovo chants at the Mitrovica match

MOn September 12 of last year, many flags of Serbia were displayed at the Bucharest stadium, where the qualifying match for "Euro 2024", Romania - Kosovo, took place.

During the match, the Romanian hooligans shouted "Serbia, Serbia" and "Kosovo is Serbia".

There were also Serbian flags and anti-Kosovo chants on Wednesday afternoon in Romania, namely at the "Central Stadium Hagi Academy" in Constanta, where the match between Farul Constanta's football players and Kosovo's champion, Mitrovica, took place. Farul Constanta won the semi-final of one of the many mini-tournaments of the first qualifying round of the Champions League with the result 4:0.

In fact, the match took longer than expected. This is due to the stoppage in the 27th minute. Until the interruption came after the request of Mitrovica club officials for the removal of the flag of Serbia and the fans who provoked, insulted Albanians and chanted anti-Kosovo. And so it happened. The match resumed only after the Serbian flag and some anti-Kosovo fans were removed from the main stand of the stadium.

The president of the Kosovo women's football champion club, Mitrovica, Hajrullah Haxhiu, has said that they will complain to UEFA about provocations, insults on a national basis and the display of the Serbian flag in the match against Farul Constanta.

"We noticed that a flag of Serbia was placed in the section where the fans of the Romanian club were. And they provoked all the time. We have notified the delegate and the judge. We have told them that without removing the flag and sending those fans away, we do not continue the game. After that situation, the tempo of the game dropped. We refused to continue the game without removing the flag of Serbia and the fans. We were asked by the delegate of the match to show that apart from the displayed flag, what were the other provocations. We heard them cursing us Albanians and they also made anti-Kosovo calls like "Kosovo is Serbia". We will also send a complaint to UEFA. They insulted on a national basis", he said  Haxhiu for the TIME on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, the Romanian media also wrote about the interruption of the match due to the display of the flag. The Romanian newspaper "GSP" called it a scandal.

"Big scandal in Farul's match in the Champions League. The flags are removed because of the message with political connotation". This is the title of the Romanian newspaper article.

He then described the whole situation that happened in the stands and the decision of the match delegate. 

"The interruption of the match by the Estonian referee, Reelika Turi, revolted the fans, who started chanting 'Kosovo is Serbia'. The delegate of the match, Ewa Gajweska from Poland, also intervened. After some discussions in which club officials were also involved, it was decided that the flag of Serbia should be removed and the match resumed. The fans obeyed, but while leaving the stands they continued to sing and make obscene gestures", writes "gsp.ro".

It is not the first time that there have been anti-Kosovo chants in various stadiums in Europe. There were also such in Pristina, when Kosovo played the qualifying match for "Euro 16" against Romania on June 2024.

The calls that were heard in "Fadil Vokrri" by a group of hooligans are the most serious provocation of visiting fans that has been done so far in Kosovo's home matches. On Friday, Kosovo plays again with Romania, within the League of Nations.