Football Australia promises ‘strong and swift action’ against Nazi-saluting fans

Football Australia has promised “strong and swift action” against what it said was a minority of fans caught performing apparent Nazi salutes and engaging in other anti-social behaviour during the Australia Cup final, threatening individual and club sanctions against Sydney United 58 and its supporters.

A near-record crowd of over 16,000 people at CommBank Stadium on Saturday night saw Macarthur FC win 2-0 over Sydney United 58, a former National Soccer League powerhouse making history as the first non-A-League team to reach the final of the knockout tournament.

Sydney United fans at the Australia Cup game.Credit: Getty

One of the country’s most storied football clubs, former players like Socceroos coach Graham Arnold, Tony Popovic, Marko Rudan and Mark Bosnich were on hand to watch them face the Bulls.

In addition, United - founded by Croatian immigrants in 1958 - had the extra support of thousands of interstate travellers who are in Sydney for the long-running annual Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament, which is being hosted by club at Edensor Park.

It unsurprisingly led to an incendiary atmosphere. The pre-match Welcome to Country was marred by booing and chanting that drowned out Erin Wilkins’ address and continued during the national anthem, while scenes were later sullied when several fans were caught on Network Ten’s cameras with their right arms raised in what appeared to be Nazi salutes, prompting others on social media to voice their disgust.

A section of fans from United, formerly known as Sydney Croatia, sang “Za Dom Spremni” (for homeland - ready) - a chant used by the far right Ustase movement in the 1930s and 1940s.

Craig Foster, another former United player, tweeted: “My apologies to Indigenous Australia. I condemn the horrific display of racist hate & stand with our Jewish and other affected communities. All involved need to be held accountable including the club.”

Football Australia condemned those responsible but, in a statement issued to the Herald after the match, stressed that the majority of fans on Saturday night were well-behaved, and that only eight people were evicted. A NSW Police spokesperson said no arrests were made.

The federation issued a stronger statement on Sunday vowing to review all available footage with CommBank Stadium management and NSW Police for potentially illegal conduct and use of what it described as a “Hitler salute”, and expressing “regret” that the Welcome to Country was overwhelmed by “unacceptable levels” of crowd noise.

“As a Reconciliation Action Plan organisation, Football Australia is committed to improving the way we embed and celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture in our game. Although we have made progress with regards to this, the events of last night highlight the need for further education to be carried out within the broader football community,” the second statement said.

Macarthur FC celebrate winning the Australia Cup Final.Credit: Getty

“Football is for all, where there is absolutely no place for anti-social behaviour in our game or the community at large. Football Australia will not let the actions of a few cast a shadow over our great game, which is loved by millions across Australia.

“Football Australia will be holding discussions with Sydney United 58 FC about the behaviour of certain fans, which could lead to both individual and club sanctions.”

Sources with knowledge of the matter told the Herald that Football Australia approached Sydney United with concerns before the match about several of the banners regularly displayed by their fans, including one red flag with a white circle containing the letters ‘EP’, which is visually similar to the flag of Nazi Germany. The club rejected Football Australia’s concerns and said ‘EP’ stood for Edensor Park.

NSW Jewish Board of Deputies CEO Darren Bark condemned the display of Nazi symbols and salutes “in the strongest possible terms”.

“These vile symbols and salutes have no place in modern Australian society. They represent the ultimate manifestation of evil - an evil which led to the murder of millions of innocent civilians during WWII, including six million Jews and thousands of Australian diggers who lost their lives fighting against the Nazis during WWII,” Bark said.

“Reprehensible conduct such as this causes immense distress to the victims of Nazi crimes and their descendants, whilst undermining our cohesive multicultural society.

“The fact that the Welcome to Country and national anthem was also booed last night underlines the contempt these people have for Australia and our diggers.

“The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies commends Football Australia for calling out these displays, and urges the governing body to take strong action against any fan who participated in these acts, including implementing lifetime attendance bans. Football Australia should also work with Sydney United to address the concerning views which are venerated by some of its fans.”

Professional Footballers Australia co-CEOs Beau Busch and Kathryn Gill said the conduct of the offending parties “shattered” the values of fairness, respect and courage reflected in the sport and on the pitch during the Australia Cup final.

“Our sport must now respond and the players are committed to playing an important role,” they said in a statement. “An effective response will not be developed by focusing on whether or not these actions were inflicted by a minority. Australian football must reflect the constantly repeated belief that we are the most inclusive and diverse sport and instead focus on our responsibility to our community and society. That responsibility can only be met if the sport firstly ensures that the safety and rights of those within it are respected and protected.”

United made grand finals in 1988, 1997 and 1999 in the old NSL, which was replaced by the A-League and was deliberately filled with new franchises instead of ethnic-backed teams in a bid to appeal to mainstream Australia.

These days, they play in the semi-professional NSW NPL, but their miracle run in the Australia Cup had put them on a true national stage for the first time in almost two decades.

with AAP