FIFA announced on Saturday that it had begun legal action against the Serbian football association for allegedly hanging a flag depicting Kosovo as a part of their nation in the locker room before their World Cup match against Brazil.
When Hajrulla Ceku, Kosovo’s Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sport, posted the picture of the flag with the words “we do not surrender” in Serbian, it quickly gained popularity on social media.
“Disgraceful images from Serbia locker room, displaying hateful, xenophobic and genocidal messages towards Kosova, while exploiting FIFA World Cup platform,” Ceku said on Twitter.
“We expect concrete actions from FIFA considering that the Kosovo Football Federation (FFK) is a full FIFA and UEFA member.”
Eight years after separating from Serbia, which opposed the move, Kosovo became a member of UEFA and FIFA in 2016.
According to a statement, “the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has begun procedures against the Football Association of Serbia due to a banner exhibited in their locker room on the occasion of the Brazil v. Serbia” match.
“The proceedings were opened on the basis of article 11 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and article 4 of the Regulations for the FIFA World Cup 2022.”
Serbia will play Cameroon on Monday after losing to Brazil 2-0. When contacted for comment, their football federation (FSS) did not offer any.
