Serbia has issued a threat to withdraw from Euro 2024 following incidents of offensive chanting by fans during the match between Croatia and Albania on Wednesday.
Chants referencing the killing of Serbians were audible during the 2-2 draw in the Group B fixture.
Jovan Surbatovic, the general secretary of the Football Association of Serbia, has demanded that severe sanctions be imposed in response to these actions.
He told the Serbian state-owned broadcaster RTS: “What happened is scandalous and we will ask [European governing body] Uefa for sanctions, even if it means not continuing the competition.”
Serbia, situated in Group C, commenced their tournament journey with a 1-0 loss to England on Sunday.
Surbatovic expressed confidence that appropriate measures would be taken by UEFA following their decision on Wednesday to revoke the credentials of Kosovar journalist Arlind Sadiku.
During the match against England, Sadiku made a nationalist gesture by displaying a double-handed eagle, reminiscent of the one depicted on Albania’s national flag. Such actions can escalate tensions between Serbian nationalists and ethnic Albanians, the predominant demographic in Kosovo.
“We will demand from Uefa to punish the federations of both selections,” Surbatovic added.
“We do not want to participate in that, but if Uefa does not punish them, we will think how will we proceed.”
The BBC has reached out to Serbia and UEFA for additional remarks.
Following instances of objects being thrown by fans during the England match, Serbia faced a fine of £12,250.
Both Serbia and Albania received fines as supporters from both nations exhibited banners featuring nationalist maps during their respective opening matches.
“We were punished for isolated cases and our fans behaved much better than the others,” Surbatovic said.
“One fan was punished for racist insults and we don’t want it to be attributed to others. We Serbs are gentlemen and we have an open heart, so I appeal to the fans to remain gentlemen.”
Serbia’s next match is against Slovenia at 14:00 BST on Thursday.
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