The game raises various questions, such as whether it is being misused to place political messages. Those responsible are keeping a low profile about the safety precautions.
Granit Xhaka is always the focus of meetings between Switzerland and Serbia, like here in Leskovac in October 2024.
Urs Flüeler / Keystone
The Football duel between Switzerland and Serbia is full of stories that took place on and off the pitch. When the Swiss were in Leskovac to play against Serbia a good five weeks ago, the atmosphere in the Dubocica Stadium was hostile. The audience accompanied the Swiss national anthem with a concert of whistles, as did Granit Xhaka, the Swiss captain, later touching the ball.
In Leskovac, local spectators also chanted: “Kosovo is Serbia.” They expressed that in their eyes Kosovo was not independent, but part of Serbian territory. A flag with the same message could be seen at times in the stadium, as well as one with the Z symbol, with which Serbian supporters demonstrated their support for the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.
The Letzigrund Stadium will be sold out
Kosovo declared its independence in 2008. To this day, Serbia does not recognize this – and is supported by Russia, for example. The conflict flares up again and again; he is a festering wound in the Balkans. And it accompanies the Swiss footballers’ international matches against Serbia because there are several players of Kosovar origin in their ranks – above all Granit Xhaka, who has been noticed several times with provocative gestures at Swiss games against Serbia. For example at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. And at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, where the double-headed eagle affair began.
2018 World Cup in Russia: The double eagle affair begins when Switzerland wins 2-1 against Serbia in Kaliningrad.
Laurent Gillieron / Keystone
Now the next meeting is coming up, in Zurich’s Letzigrund. According to the Swiss Football Association (SFV), 400 tickets were still available on Thursday afternoon; In total, the stadium offers space for 21,200 spectators. 1267 of them will sit in the Serbian fan block. Other Serbian supporters are likely to have purchased tickets in the other sectors, as well as those of Kosovar and Albanian origin who want to support footballers like Granit Xhaka and the Swiss team. There is a large diaspora in Switzerland from both countries.
This raises various questions. For example, whether the game in Zurich is also being misused to place political messages. And what safety precautions are taken in and around Letzigrund.
Both the football association and the Zurich city police are keeping a low profile in the run-up to the game. The association does not address questions about the assessment of the situation and the security situation in more detail. The Zurich city police, who will be responsible for security outside the stadium, are not providing any detailed information “for tactical reasons”. However, she does not classify the encounter in Letzigrund as a high-risk game.
When asked, the SFV said that “only flags of the two playing teams” were allowed on Friday. According to the association, the measure will be taken at games where there is an increased likelihood of political messages being spread. If such messages do appear in the stadium, they will be “removed if possible” by the security forces, the association continues.
After the first leg, various penalties were imposed by UEFA
For the first leg in Leskovac, in which Switzerland lost 2-0, the Serbian Football Association had taken a number of precautions to increase security. There was a large police presence at the entrances and around the stadium. The tickets were personalized and identity had to be proven upon entry.
Actually, only Serbian and Swiss flags were allowed there. And spectators were asked to refrain from provocative chants. At the time, the Serbian Football Association emphasized in its announcement about the security precautions that they were under special observation by UEFA and asked spectators not to disturb peace and order.
The measures only had a partial effect. While the stadium remained quiet, there were various violations of UEFA disciplinary regulations during the game. Subsequently, the Serbian Football Association was fined a total of 52,500 euros by UEFA for the events in Leskovac.
These were expressed, for example, because of the whistling concert during the Swiss national anthem and because of “provocative messages”. UEFA has also imposed a stadium ban, initially suspended for two years, because of “discriminatory behavior” by Serbian supporters. The Serbian association had already been punished in the past for messages sent by its supporters in connection with Kosovo, most recently at the European Championships in Germany last summer.
