El Flaco
Active member
So it seems the incident from yesterday wasn't done at random.
Found a great summary about the background of this.
Found a great summary about the background of this.
Before I even begin, let me say that the culprits have been identified and their pictures together with their names are being circulated via social media. Needless to say, the Croatian nation is furious; 'they want blood'. Amongst the incensed are the players (Perisic said the game was 'bullshit'), the coach (who called the perpetrators 'terrorists'), public figures, and even the Croatian president. Immediately after the match, the media published the pictures of the wrongdoers and asked the public to help with identification.
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Who did it and why?
In short, extremist football club supporters ('hooligans', 'ultras') who are unhappy with how the Croatian Football Federation (FF) is run and the (supposed) corruption within. They don't like the leadership with whom they are at war for years now. What happened today is their attempt at trying to force their way, embarrass the Croatian FF officials and incite outrage in the football world. By doing so, they hoped to disqualify the Croatian national football team from the EURO competition. They think this (amongst other things) will put enough pressure on the people they want to step down to step down.
This is not the first time they've done something like this and they are adamant to continue until their requests are satisfied. You might remember Croatia being punished/fined/disqualified 15+ times in the recent years due to disturbances such as this one (riots, clashes with the police, racism, pitch invasions, etc). Especially prominent was the swastika mowed into the Split stadium field the night before the EURO 2016 qualifier match against Italy.
Again, it is important to understand that these are not random acts of boredom or drunkenness; they are planned and precisely orchestrated to further an agenda.
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Who specifically in the Croatian FF is the problem for them?
Mainly, Zdravko Mamic and Davor Suker.
Zdravko is the de facto director of the Croatian FF and Dinamo Zagreb football club.
Davor is the formal president of the Croatian FF and a member of the UEFA Executive Committee.
Shortly, the two most powerful characters in the world of Croatian football.
Zdravko is being accused of setting up unfair player contracts, purchasing referee decisions, tax evasion, ignoring supporters' wishes to participate in the club decision making, and interfering with the Croatian national football team. Some media outlets have published this picture of Zdravko giving instructions to the coach Ante Cacic before today's game. Some people claim he is the decision maker of who gets to be the coach of the national team and which players get to play. He is also criticised of selling hundreds of millions of euros worth of football potential from 'his' club (Modric, Corluka, Mandzukic, Eduardo da Silva, Sammir, Halilovic, Kovacic, Pranjic, Badelj, etc.) instead of increasing squad strength by keeping the players and competing in the major European tournaments (he defends himself by saying he creates great players and that he props up the Croatian economy by paying millions in taxes as well). As a result the club is seen as the transition point between Croatian meagreness and European superstar clubs; the general sentiment being that if you are a player and you want to succeed, you have to go through Mamic.
Davor is similarly accused of corruption and being a right hand to/of Zdravko.
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So what's the issue then? Get these people out of the football?
The 'issue' is that the current FF leadership is supported by many (including politicians) and that there is no proof of the accusations.
Though, Zdravko Mamic is currently under several investigations for the above, and indeed was jailed multiple times under allegations that didn't last long. Zdravko consistently claims he's a victim of his political enemies in power. He is currently under a court order to stay away from club duties (now acts as a 'club advisor'), but his involvement with the FF remains uninhibited.
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Other important points/facts:
* Davor Suker claims Croatia will get away with a warning/fine for what happened today and continue the tournament unhampered otherwise
* The two supporter divisions apparently involved are Bad Blue Boys of Dinamo Zagreb and Torcida of Hajduk Split, otherwise diametrically opposed and fierce enemies
* The interruption of the match was planned long ahead and Croatian intelligence agencies (and later the media) warned the French days in advance
St Etienne supporters are said to have purchased match tickets for the Croatian hooligans under random names; there were no ID checks at stadium entrances
* The amount of pyrotechnics brought on this time must serve as a caution to the French; there are people that would be willing to carry through something much more sinister than a firecracker
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...but this "fans" are actualy helping those criminals...
