"Euros 2024: How will Germany police pro-Palestinian expression?"

Analysis: Vague UEFA guidelines and heavy-handed crackdown by police will meet those wishing to express solidarity with Palestine at Euro 2024 in Germany.

[...] The Euros are a pan-European tournament, but they draw in hundreds of millions of viewers from around the world – making it a huge potential platform for protest. European football fans have been moved by the harrowing scenes coming out of Gaza, and some of the most recent protests have included those seen at the Scotland vs. Israel Women’s Euro 2025 qualifying match in Glasgow last month. 

With the genocide continuing unabated, we have to expect at least attempts at pro-Palestine protest from fans – and with that, attempts to curb such expression from tournament organisers and German authorities. [...]

Palestine flags in stadiums: Vague wording, precedent unclear

The stadium and tournament rules from UEFA, the governing body for European football, are not explicit in their prohibition of Palestinian, Israeli, or other flags inside or near stadiums. Instead, UEFA rules for inside the stadium forbid expression of “political” messages, particularly “discriminatory propaganda messages”; outside the stadiums, it has prohibited “political and/or religious demonstrations” in what it calls “clean zones” around the vicinity of tournament venues.

UEFA has in the past sanctioned expressions of solidarity with Palestine at European matches. The football governing body reportedly fined activists 3,000 euros after they stormed the pitch at the Women’s Champions League final in Bilbao last month to display a flag bearing the message “Stop Genocide” and “EU don’t be an accessory”. [...]

The New Arab contacted UEFA for clarification on whether Palestinian flags would be allowed into stadiums but did not receive a response by the time this article was published. The vague wording and confusing precedent set by other matches considered, Germany must protect the right to protest or wave flags and banners, a representative of Amnesty International told The New Arab.

“Both UEFA and the German authorities must strictly respect fans’ rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly within and around stadiums, including in relation to Palestine,” said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International Head of Labour Rights and Sport.

“The rights to freedom of expression and assembly are protected both by international human rights law and the German constitution and extend to privately owned spaces, including football stadiums,” Cockburn said.

Amnesty “strongly urges the German authorities and UEFA to refrain from issuing any blanket bans on either protests in solidarity with Palestine or certain symbols such as flags in this context.” [...]

UEFA and German authorities are unlikely to give grace to fans and players from abroad, Tobias den Haan from the European Legal Support Centre told The New Arab.

“I think Germany won't necessarily be kinder to tourists or football fans wanting to show solidarity with Palestine,” said den Haan, who is the ELSC’s Monitor Project Officer for Germany.

“We know how the UEFA and FIFA have acted so far around the world in response to people showing solidarity with Palestine in stadiums, and I think Germany will be no different."