Shortly before the end of the match

Fuss over fan banner: ÖFB “very concerned”

The Austrian fans were in a great mood, but one banner caused a stir.(Bild: GEPA pictures)

The Austrian Football Association (ÖFB) has distanced itself from an obviously right-wing extremist banner that was presented during the final phase of the European Championship match against Poland (3:1) in Berlin on Friday. "Defend Europe" was written on the banner. 

The slogan belongs to the far-right Identitarian Movement (IB), which, according to the German Office for the Protection of the Constitution, advocates the immediate closure of all borders and stylizes migration as a general threat.

"The ÖFB is very concerned that a banner like this got into the stadium despite strict controls. The national team and the association clearly stand for tolerance, diversity and integration in all areas of our society," a statement from the association said on Saturday morning. The banner could not be attributed to the organized fan scene of the national team.

ÖFB intervened immediately
ÖFB fan representatives intervened immediately and documented the action, which lasted around two minutes shortly before the end of the match.

"We are now working on clarifying the identity of the persons involved. Hateful messages like this have no place in the national team's fan sector," emphasized the soccer association. "The ÖFB has taken a very clear stance against extremism for years and does a lot of preventative work, as this is in stark contrast to all the values that the ÖFB and soccer embody."