What sanctions can (or cannot) UEFA take after the controversial celebration of the Turk Merih Demiral

The Turkish national team defender celebrated a goal scored in the round of 16 against Austria with a gesture attributed to a far-right group.

Will UEFA crack down? Merih Demiral may have been the hero of Turkey’s qualification against Austria on Tuesday 2 July in the round of 16 of the Euro, but he has also become the target of an investigation by UEFA, the European football federation. The cause was his celebration after his two goals, hands raised with the little finger and index finger raised, the symbol of the “Grey Wolves”, a small group of the Turkish far right, banned in France in particular. Merih Demiral is accused of “potential inappropriate behavior”For the football authority, this gesture theoretically goes against its principle of neutrality.

The UEFA statutes in fact define the organisation as “politically and religiously neutral”, in Articles 1 and 2. The Turkish defender’s gesture could therefore lead the institution to sanction Merih Demiral. A “ethics and disciplinary investigator” was appointed by UEFA, which will reveal its findings following this investigation. But does the federation really have the arsenal to impose a reprimand? Its texts do not offer a precise answer.

A suspension of a match is provided for by article 15 of the disciplinary regulations of the body, relating to the “incorrect behavior of players and officials” in case “insulting a player or another person present at the match”, of “unsportsmanlike conduct”, or of “provocation of spectators”But the regulation does not qualify in detail whether a political gesture, whatever the associated symbolism, is insulting, unsportsmanlike, or provocative.

Article 14 of the same regulation specifically refers to cases of “racism and discriminatory behavior”. “Any person subject to these regulations […] who violates the dignity of a person or group of persons for any reason whatsoever, in particular their skin colour, race, religion, ethnic origin, gender or sexual orientation, will be liable to a suspension of at least ten matches or for a fixed period, or any other appropriate sanction”, can be read. But it remains for UEFA to determine whether Merih Demiral’s gesture is, in its nature, discriminatory.

There are not many precedents. In 2013, UEFA applied this rule by suspending Croatian Josip Simunic for ten matches. The latter had performed salutes of the fascist movement “Ustase” with supporters. For a political gesture, a mime of the double-headed eagle of the Albanian flag during a match against Serbia at the 2018 World Cup, the two Swiss players Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka were only given financial sanctions. The gesture, in support of Kosovo, the country of origin of the two players, was perceived in Serbia as a provocation and a nationalist symbol, while Serbia has never recognized Kosovar independence.

UEFA nevertheless bans the “transmission by gesture, word, object or by any other means of any provocative message unsuitable for a sporting event, in particular any provocative message of a political, ideological, religious or insulting nature” in Article 16 of its disciplinary regulations. But this only concerns “case of improper conduct by supporters” and not players. What if “use a sporting event for an event unrelated to sport” is contrary to “general principles of conduct“dictated by UEFA disciplinary regulations, the sanction”by way
disciplinary“mentioned in article 11 leaves a wide range of punishments, from suspension to simple reprimand.

A match between Turkey and the French team in 2019 saw Turkish players perform a military salute as a celebration, in the context of armed intervention in Syria. UEFA fined the Turkish federation €50,000 for the behavior of its supporters, handed out reprimands to the players who performed the salute, but did not issue any sporting sanctions.

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said in 2021 in the German daily The world that his institution did not want to be “used in populist actions”while the Munich stadium had been illuminated in the colours of the rainbow flag, in support of the LGBTI community, on the sidelines of a match between Germany and Hungary. The Hungarian parliament had a few days earlier adopted a law banning “the promotion of homosexuality” among minors.“Because of the popularity of football, people too often try to abuse sports associations for their own purposes,” added Aleksander Ceferin.

Pending the conclusions of the UEFA investigation, Merih Demiral’s gesture is already not without political consequences. The Turkish ambassador was summoned to Berlin on Thursday morning, a spokesperson for the German Foreign Ministry announced to AFP, while the day before, the German ambassador had been summoned by Ankara. German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser had estimated that ““The symbol of Turkish right-wing extremists has no place in our stadiums”.

Against the backdrop of these diplomatic tensions, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will attend the Turkish team’s quarter-final match against the Netherlands in Berlin on Saturday, the Turkish presidency announced to AFP.