Mladić honored before football derby in Serbia

Before the football derby between Belgrade’s Crvena Zvezda and Partizan, a minute of silence was held in Serbia for Ratko Mladić, the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The 180th Eternal Derby was held on September 7 at the Rajko Mitić Stadium in Belgrade. Crvena Zvezda supporters unfurled a large banner depicting Mladić, while fans of both clubs chanted his name. According to Anadolu Agency, citing Serbian media, the minute of silence ended after the stadium announcer wished Mladić eternal glory.

Derby result

The match ended with Crvena Zvezda defeating Partizan 2–1.

UEFA sanctions

Two days before the derby, UEFA fined Crvena Zvezda €90,000 over chants and banners honoring Mladić during the Europa League playoff match against Czech club Viktoria on August 27. The club was also barred from selling tickets to its supporters for its next away match in European competition. UEFA cited, among other things, racist or discriminatory behavior and the display of a message unacceptable for a sporting event.

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During the match in Plzeň, Crvena Zvezda fans chanted Mladić’s name, saluted him and displayed a banner reading: “General, eternal glory and gratitude.” The club later published an image of the banner on its social media accounts.

Ratko Mladić died in The Hague on August 27 at the age of 84 while serving his life sentence. He was found guilty of crimes committed during the 1992–1995 war in Bosnia, including genocide for his role in the mass killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995. International courts recognized the massacre as genocide.

In 2017, Crvena Zvezda supporters had already honored Mladić with a banner and chants during a Europa League match against BATE. UEFA then ordered the club to play a home match without spectators and fined it €50,000. After an appeal, the fine was reduced to €30,000, while the sanction requiring a match without spectators was suspended with a two-year probationary period.

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