Everyone’s Game? UEFA & The Politics of EURO 2020

LGBTQ+Sports
Written By Be Nothing Club

Words by Dylan Mangan

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EURO 2020 has so far been as compelling as international tournaments can get. We’ve seen brilliant goals and performances from various players and countries. Italy have blown their group away, Germany have been high and low, while players like Romelu Lukaku, Gini Wijnaldum and Manuel Locatelli have made early claims to be the player of the tournament. Press conferences are suddenly entertaining again, with Ronaldo’s coke snub sparking responses from other players and coaches, while Gareth Bale chose to celebrate qualifying from Group A by confessing his belief in aliens.

A big reason for such a captivating time on the pitch has been one of the great intangibles returning in the presence of fans. We’ve become so well adjusted to their absence that it almost feels weird to watch games where there are as much as 50 % of fans in attendance, as seen in Baku, London and St Petersburg. Most stadiums are hosting less, some more, but none as much as the Puskás Aréna in Hungary, where games have been at full capacity for the first time in over a year. Combine this with Hungary’s presence in the Group of Death, playing their games at home against giants Portugal, Germany and reigning World Champions France, and you have a pretty potent dramatic football moment generator.

That generator did some generating when France fell behind against a Hungarian team that, despite coming into the tournament 8 games unbeaten, struggled in their first game against Portugal and came into the game without huge expectations. France’s forward line of Mbappé-Benzema-Griezmann should have made easy work of a defence featuring players who have never played outside of their country, like Endre Botka and 31 year old Attila Fiola. Instead it was Fiola who found himself in space running towards Hugo Lloris’ goal, and managed to compose himself just enough to squeeze the ball into the bottom corner. 

As you would expect, the 61,000 fans present went wild. It was a great spectacle and an euphoric moment for the Hungary team and their passionate fans. It also perhaps sums up the awkwardness of EURO 2020 - and the cowardice of UEFA - more than any other moment so far. The most eye-catching set of fans in the stadium were a large group of blackshirted ultras behind one of the goals - The Carpathian Brigade. 

This gang of racist neo-nazis are a physical embodiment of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government and have once again highlighted the knots that UEFA will twist themselves into in order to avoid making any sort of decision about anything controversial, even when it goes against a stance they’ve already tied themselves to.

Hungary’s recent anti-LGBTQ+ laws are the latest in a long line of changes made by Orbán as Hungary goes further down the road towards a fascist dictatorship, and offered UEFA the perfect chance to take a stand against the kind of discrimination and homophobia they’ve been trying oh so hard to stamp out.

This from under a year ago was UEFA’s attempt to join in the weird practice of brands dunking on random people for social points instead of actually doing something. UEFA have rightfully pushed the rainbow as a symbol of equality and diversity within the game, but whenever it has been challenged have failed to stand up for what they supposedly believe in. Germany captain Manuel Neur was subject to an investigation by UEFA for wearing a rainbow armband, a baffling decision which was stopped, presumably when someone in the boardroom had an out of body experience realising the stupidity of it all.

Germany face Hungary this evening in a game that has meaning both on and off the pitch. Hungary need to win to stay in the tournament, while a point will do for the Germans. The German FA made a request to UEFA, asking for permission to light up Munich’s Allianz Arena in rainbow colours. Munich mayor Dieter Reiter made the request in protest against a new law in Hungary that bans the sharing of any content seen as promoting homosexuality and gender change to under-18s.

 Of course, UEFA declined the request, releasing a statement that’s spineless even by their invertebrate standards.

UEFA’s statement.

UEFA’s statement.

Let me translate:
We at UEFA are proud to stand by all those in the LGBTQ+ community. We believe in a tolerant, fair, and inclusive society for everyone. We also believe that upsetting a homophobic, transphobic goverment would be a critical error in judgement, especially because of our reliance on them.

To say the decision to prevent the city of Munich from illuminating the Allianz Arena in rainbow colours is a political one is like saying that Hungary’s new anti-LGBTQ+ laws are political, how ridiculous!

Anyway, Germany started all this so it’s their fault. We love gay people almost as much as we love rainbows. #EqualGame

It’s not UEFA’s fault that Hungary passed these laws, and it’s not UEFA’s fault that Hungary qualified for this tournament. They don’t have the responsibility to enact actual change in Hungary, but as a governing body in the world of football, they do have the power to make a statement that would show Orbán and the Carpathian Brigade they are in the minority, and fighting a losing battle. Lighting up a stadium in rainbow colours is a purely cosmetic declaration, but is the very least UEFA could do in this situation. Instead, they revert to type by not even doing that.

The mayor of Munich and the German FA have an opportunity tonight to take their own stance. Nobody at UEFA is in charge of pressing the buttons to change the lights, and any punishment for Germany would amount to just a fine. Whether or not it’s one they would be willing to pay remains to be seen.

Be Nothing Club
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