Europe’s football governing body, UEFA, handed a two-match ban to Turkish player Merih Demiral on Friday for making a controversial political gesture.
Demiral formed a wolf’s head with his fingers after scoring his second goal in Turkey’s 2-1 victory over Austria on Tuesday. This gesture is associated with the Turkish far-right.
UEFA sanctioned Demiral for “failing to comply with the general principles of conduct, for violating the basic rules of decent conduct, for using sports events for manifestations of a non-sporting nature, and for bringing the sport of football into disrepute.”
As a result, Demiral will miss Turkey’s game against the Netherlands on Saturday and a potential semi-final against England or Switzerland if Turkey advances.
Demiral defended his actions, stating that he intended only to express pride in being Turkish and had no other message. He posted an image of the celebration on the platform X (formerly Twitter), saying, “How happy is the one who says ‘I am a Turk.'”
Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz condemned the ban, calling it unacceptable. “The beauty and excitement of football should not be overshadowed with political decisions,” Yilmaz said in a post on X.
