Turkey defender Merih Demiral has been banned for two matches by UEFA after celebrating a goal at Euro 2024 by displaying a hand sign associated with an ultra-nationalist group in his side's round of 16 win over Austria on Tuesday.
UEFA confirmed on Wednesday that it had appointed an inspector to investigate Demiral and said in a statement on Friday that he had been sanctioned “for failing to comply with the general principles of conduct, for violating the basic rules of decent behaviour, for using sporting events for demonstrations of a non-sporting nature and for bringing the sport of football into disrepute”.
The defender scored both goals in a 2-1 win to earn a place in the quarter-finals, although he will now miss his side's game against the Netherlands on Saturday.
If Turkey wins that tie, Demiral would also miss the semi-final against England or Switzerland, who play earlier on Saturday. If the Netherlands win, the second half of the ban would be served in the next competitive match after the tournament.
After scoring the second goal, he appeared to make a sign with each hand associated with the Turkish ultranationalist organisation Ulku Ocaklari, better known as the Grey Wolves.
Demiral was previously one of 16 Turkish players reprimanded in 2019 for giving military-style salutes in matches at a time when the country was carrying out a military offensive in Syria.
The Grey Wolves group has been banned in France, while Austria has banned the use of the Grey Wolf salute, widely used by nationalists in Turkey.
The incident has sparked political difficulties between Germany and Turkey. German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said: “Symbols of Turkish right-wing extremists have no place in our stadiums.” in a post on X On Wednesday.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he decided to attend the quarter-finals in Berlin on Saturday as a result of the fallout from Demiral's gesture, according to Turkish media reports.
The Demiral and Erdogan governments have defended the gesture as a normal expression of patriotic pride.
“Anybody ask why the German national team's shirt has an eagle and the French one has a rooster? Merih [Demiral] “He showed his enthusiasm with that gesture,” Erdogan told reporters on Thursday on a flight from Kazakhstan.
Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said on Friday that the ban should be lifted.
“The beauty and emotion of football should not be overshadowed by political decisions,” Yilmaz said in a post on X.
Information from Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
