Hungary to Play 3 Matches Without Fans After Racist, Homophobic Chants at Euro 2020
Jul 9, 2021
A photograph taken on July 1, 2021 shows the Puskas Arena stadium, one of the main venue for Euro 2020, illuminated in blue, as Hungary holds the presidency of the Visegrad Four for a one-year term starting from today. - In honour of this event, several other prominent Hungarian public buildings are enlighten in blue which is the official colour of the presidency and the V4. (Photo by ATTILA KISBENEDEK / AFP) (Photo by ATTILA KISBENEDEK/AFP via Getty Images)
The Hungary national team will have to play three UEFA-sanctioned matches in an empty stadium due to racist chants and homophobic banners displayed by supporters at Euro 2020, according to Sky Sports.
The Hungarian Football Federation also received a fine of €100,000.
The punishment will apply to Hungary's next two matches, though it won't apply to any World Cup qualifiers since those are overseen by FIFA. The Magyars are scheduled to host England (Sept. 2) and Andorra (Sept. 8) on home soil in a pair of qualifiers.
The third stadium ban is suspended for two years and pending behavior from fans at future fixtures.
Hungary played its first two matches of Euro 2020 at Puskas Arena in Budapest.
The homophobic banners were displayed as the team lost 3-0 to Portugal on June 15. UEFA said it was also looking into monkey chants that were performed by home supporters as Hungary drew 1-1 with France on June 19.
Hungary closed out the group stage at Munich's Allianz Arena.
To draw attention to an anti-gay law that made its way through Hungarian parliament, the Munich city council proposed lighting the Allianz Arena's exterior in the colors of the rainbow. UEFA denied the request, a decision that Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter called "shameful."
Hungary isn't the only national team that was recently punished for anti-gay behavior by live supporters. FIFA issued a two-match stadium ban to Mexico that will apply to World Cup qualifying.
UEFA Investigating 'Potential Discriminatory Incidents' in Budapest amid Euro 2020
Jun 20, 2021
Players of Hungary applaud their fans after the Euro 2020 soccer championship group F match between Hungary and Portugal at the Ferenc Puskas stadium in Budapest, Hungary, Tuesday, June 15, 2021. Portugal won 3-0. (AP Photo/Laszlo Balogh, Pool)
UEFA is in the process of investigating "potential discriminatory incidents" that took place over the weekend during Hungary's Euro 2020 matches.
According to the European football governing body, there were banners stating "Anti-LMBTQ"—the Hungarian abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer—at matches against Portugal and France.
The incident comes in the wake of a controversial parliament ruling last week in Hungary. New legislation "bans the dissemination of content in schools deemed to promote homosexuality and gender change," according to Reuters.
Per Reuters, a statement from UEFA said "an ethics and disciplinary inspector" will manage the investigation.
Budapest's Puskas Stadium was the only stadium to host a full capacity crowd during the Euros.
In the interim, Germany—the team that will host Hungary in the final stage of group play Wednesday—has joined those publicly opposing the new legislation.
The mayor of Munich, Dieter Reiter, said Sunday he plans to write to UEFA and request that Germany's stadium be lit with rainbow colors during the game in "an important sign of tolerance and equality." Munich's city council already made a similar request.
"It is important for the state capital Munich to set a visible sign of solidarity with the LGBTI community in Hungary, which is suffering from the current stricter homophobic and transphobic legislation of the Hungarian government," the council wrote.
Zoltan Gera Wins Euro 2016 Goal of the Tournament: Comments, Reaction and More
Jul 13, 2016
Hungary's Zoltan Gera, second from right, scores his side's first goal during the Euro 2016 Group F soccer match between Hungary and Portugal at the Grand Stade in Decines-Charpieu, near Lyon, France, Wednesday, June 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)
Fans have voted Zoltan Gera's opening goal in Hungary's 3-3 draw against Portugal during the UEFA Euro 2016 group stage as the Goal of the Tournament.
UEFA confirmed the news on their official website, revealing Gera beat out the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri of Switzerland and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal with his superb volley from distance.
The 37-year-old scored his stunner after 19 minutes—the first of six goals in what was arguably Euro 2016's best match.
Not everyone agreed with the popular vote, however. Shaqiri's spectacular bicycle kick against Poland in the round of 16 was the favourite when the voting opened, and Bleacher Report UK couldn't believe it didn't win:
The Switzerland star also missed out on BBC Sport's award, as British fans voted for Hal Robson-Kanu's effort against Belgium. The Welshman won a UEFA fan poll for the best goal of the quarter-finals, but he couldn't overtake Gera for the top prize.
Hungary Striker Krisztian 'Nemo' Nemeth's Long and Winding Road to the Euros
Jun 13, 2016
Hungary striker Krisztian Nemeth has had a lot to celebrate over the last 12 months.
There was the curling comet of a goal that leveled the U.S. Open Cup final against Philadelphia, which Sporting Kansas later won on penalties. Then there was Nemeth making Major League Soccer history as the only player in the league's 20-year existence to score on all of his first seven shots on goal in a season.
After each of his 11 MLS goals in 2015, Nemeth slid on his knees toward the nearest group of fans and performed his "lightning" celebration—one arm bent toward the closest ear and the other outstretched toward the crowd.
It's an ode to a friend back home in Hungary.
"When I scored my first national team goal in Hungary," Nemeth tells Bleacher Report, "he was injured, and I did this celebration for him. And after, I just kept it."
His successes with Sporting Kansas City in 2015 led to international recognition with Hungary and a key role in qualifying his country for Euro 2016—its first appearance in the tournament since 1972. Hungary will compete in Group F with Austria, Iceland and Portugal.
"It's one of the best feelings for sure. Especially after those 44 years," Nemeth says. "It's a long, long, long time. So for us, for the fans, it's really important. Everybody was very, very happy."
More goals, more smiles, more celebrating. Nemeth insists that now is meant for celebrating, but when tournament time rolls around, he and his teammates will be as focused as ever.
Nemeth's family and friends still live in Hungary, and he makes sure to mention that he misses them. But he also carries them with him through acts such as his goal celebration. Or by remembering how he started playing soccer as a five-year-old, played as a youth for the Hungary national team and always dreamed of playing as a man for his national team.
Hungary's Krisztian Nemeth celebrates after scoring a goal during the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group F football match between Greece and Hungary on October 11, 2015 at the Georgios Karaiskakis stadium in Athens. AFP PHOTO / ANGELOS TZORTZINIS (Ph
There are many things people who aren't from Hungary can't possibly appreciate about the country, Nemeth says. He pulls one example from his sleeve.
"There are a lot of nice girls," he says.
Such as his fiancee. Especially her.
The two met in a hospital when they both happened to be going in for medical check-ups before their respective athletic seasons. She played handball for a Hungarian club.
She is one of the many gifts the game has given him. And in his brief spare time between seasons in early December, Nemeth and his fiancee explored New York. They visited the Empire State Building, which is the poetic thing to do when you feel on top of the world.
Nemeth grew up in the small city of Gyor, Hungary, which is located about an hour outside of Budapest.
He developed his game with Liverpool from 2007-10 and trained alongside the likes of Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano and Robbie Keane. When he first arrived in England, Nemeth knew barely any English, a language he now speaks with little difficulty.
He bounced from Greek to Hungarian to Dutch clubs. And then he found himself in America's heartland—one in Sporting Kansas City's scoring duo with Dom Dwyer—and he soon was beloved. But on Jan. 29, the MLS club reported that it had agreed to transfer its popular forward to Al-Gharafa SC in Qatar in exchange for two-thirds of the transfer fee.
Fortunately, Nemeth is good at navigating.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liHmz9wUv7U
In October, before his abrupt departure, Sporting visited the Portland Timbers just three days after winning the U.S. Open Cup in Chester, Pennsylvania. The game was goalless until Nemeth slalomed his way past three opponents and delivered the strike that was named 2015 AT&T Goal of the Year. Sporting Kansas City won 1-0. It was Portland's last loss—thanks to Nemeth—on its run to winning the MLS Cup.
Back home in Hungary the following Monday, Nemeth was shown smiling coyly on the front page of the sports daily Nemzeti Sport.
Is he some kind of celebrity now?
"I don't know," he says with a little laugh. "You'd have to ask family. I guess. Maybe."
On Aug. 12, Real Salt Lake visited Kansas City for a U.S. Open Cup semifinal. In the crowd was a boy celebrating his ninth birthday. After the game, Nemeth joined his teammates in walking around the stadium and clapping. He was one in the pack until his teammates kept walking, and he stopped. He gave the boy his game-worn No. 9 jersey, and the boy hugged him.
It was with that interaction that I saw it: Kansas City had embraced Nemeth as its own, and Nemeth hugged Kansas City back.
Nemeth has been involved with his national team, in some capacity, since he was a boy. He remembers calling his family when he received his first call-up, though he didn't play in the game. He was only 17 years old. His first cap came about three-and-a-half years later against Germany.
So maybe 2015 was more of a reemergence. Either way, Nemeth recognizes that MLS and Sporting Kansas City played a massive role.
"Before MLS, I didn't play on the national team," he says. "After I started to play here in Kansas City, Hungary started to like me again."
OSLO, NORWAY - NOVEMBER 12: Tom Hogli of Norway and Krisztian Nemeth of Hungary in action during the UEFA EURO 2016 qualifier between Norway and Hungary on November 12, 2015 in Oslo, Norway. (Photo by Ragnar Singsaas/Getty Images)
As things stand, Hungary has some clubs of its own but not a high-quality domestic league.
"The national team's popularity is growing, but the clubs—we have to build it up again," Nemeth says. "Ten or 15 years ago, every stadium had a lot of people to watch. But now, there's not as much as before."
And so Nemeth finds himself playing for Al-Gharafa in Qatar, where the goals are flowing and his journey continues.
Nemeth likes the film Finding Nemo. Sporting Kansas City fans loved to call him "Nemo." They made signs. They chanted. They alluded to the movie when he scored a goal.
"Now they're coming out with Nemo 2: Finding Dory. Did you know that?" Nemeth asks. He laughs. "But the reason people call me Nemo isn't because of the film. The original reason is because Nemeth—that's just the shorter version in Hungary."
"I have settled quickly at Gharafa, I have played in many countries before so I knew I could adapt.”admitted Németh. pic.twitter.com/gPdde67vD3
There is no short version of Nemeth's journey. It has taken years of work and doubt and fear and friends and family and triumph and, yes, celebration. A long road led to Kansas City, then on to Qatar and even still to the chance of bringing Euros glory back to Hungary. There's still a lot of road left to travel with a ball at his feet and a soon-to-be wife by his side.
Krisztian Nemeth has been to many places, is exploring many places and still has places he wants to go. But he can't be everywhere. He can't know if he's a celebrity in Hungary, in his home where it all started, and maybe that's the point.
When you're so busy conquering the world, who has time to read about it?
