Shortly before the match against Hungary, the English national football team took a knee to send a signal against racism. The spectators in Budapest reacted with loud boos – and earned criticism from England.
England’s national football team has criticised the renewed booing in Hungary and wants to continue to make a collective statement in the fight against racism. “We’re certainly not going to stop as a team,” Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Conor Coady said after Saturday’s 1-0 Nations League defeat in Hungary. Boos were clearly heard in Budapest after England took a knee as usual shortly before kick-off. “I’ll be honest, it’s really very disappointing,” Coady said of the reaction in the Puskás Aréna.
“We just hope people understand it more and more. We want to make sure as a team and as a nation that things change in a positive way,” Coady said. “It’s important that we stay true to our principles. It’s important that we continue to do what we’ve been talking about for the last few years.” He added that many people now know what the England team stands for. “If people don’t like it, so be it,” Coady said on Sky Sports.
The England players began making calls last year to address racial injustices in society. “I have no idea why people are booing during this gesture,” England coach Gareth Southgate said. The ex-professional said his team was doing such actions primarily to try to “educate people” on the reason for kneeling. The 51-year-old did not want to directly criticise the fans in Budapest in the interview on Channel 4. Many younger people probably don’t even know why they are booing in the first place, he said. “They are influenced by older adults,” Southgate surmised.
“It’s not proper, nobody wants that. Not in Hungary, not in any football stadium in the world. The Hungarians still have to learn a thing or two,” record-breaking international Lothar Matthäus, who himself coached the Hungarians from January 2004 to December 2005, told RTL.
Despite the ban on spectators because of discriminatory behaviour by Hungarian fans, the stadium was well filled. According to the regulations of the European Football Union UEFA, children up to the age of 14 are allowed into the stadium for matches played in camera if they are invited and accompanied by an adult. According to media reports, more than 30,000 spectators were registered before the match.
Due to discriminatory behaviour of its fans during the European Championship matches against Portugal, France and Germany, Hungary’s national team had been sentenced to two UEFA home matches without spectators. This sentence was later reduced to one match, with a further match suspended for two years. There had been racist behaviour by Hungarian spectators in England’s World Cup qualifiers last year.
England will also have to play their first Nations League home game on 11 June against Italy in Wolverhampton without spectators. The association was condemned to do this because of the riots around the European Championship final a year ago. The UEFA regulations on the attendance of children at stadiums will also be applied, and between 2,000 and 3,000 fans are expected.
European Championship runners-up England lost their Nations League opener in the German group after a goal from RB Leipzig’s Dominik Szoboszlai of the Hungarian Bundesliga. The 21-year-old converted a not uncontroversial penalty in the 66th minute. Next Saturday, Hungary will host the DFB team, before which England have to play in Munich after their unsuccessful start on Tuesday.