Red Star Belgrade fans display tifo honoring war criminal Ratko Mladic before derby win
Quick Look
Red Star Belgrade fans unveiled a tifo honoring convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic before their derby victory over Partizan Belgrade, prompting condemnation from Bosnia-Herzegovina's national team and reigniting controversy over the club's history of glorifying figures responsible for atrocities during the Yugoslav wars, including the Srebrenica genocide and Siege of Sarajevo.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Ratko Mladic was convicted in 2017 of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity for his role in the Srebrenica massacre and Siege of Sarajevo during the Bosnian War. He died in UN custody in August 2024. Red Star Belgrade fans have previously been fined by UEFA for similar displays honoring Mladic.
Red Star Belgrade fans unveiled a tifo of war criminal Ratko Mladic before their derby win over Partizan Belgrade on Sunday night.
Mladic, who died in a United Nations prison in August, was given a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in 2017.
He and his troops were responsible for the systematic killing of the non-Serb population of Bosnia-Herzegovina during the wars in the former Yugoslavia between 1992 and 1995.
He oversaw the massacre of 8,000 men and boys at Srebrenica and a siege of the capital Sarajevo in which more than 10,000 people died.
Red Star have already been fined 90,000 euros (£77,000) this season by Uefa, external after their fans unveiled a banner commemorating Mladic in a Europa League play-off against Czech side FC Viktoria Plzen last month.
Red Star's social media accounts published a video of the tifo and the two teams observing a minute's silence for Mladic, alongside a saluting emoji.
The official X account of Bosnia-Herzegovina's national team replied with an obscenity.
After initially enjoying the protection of Serb president Slobodan Milosevic, who would later die while on trial for genocide himself, Mladic spent more than a decade on the run, eventually being found hiding out in a remote farmhouse.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
UEFA will investigate and likely impose additional fines on Red Star Belgrade for the tifo display.
Likely · Within weeks
Open Questions
- Will UEFA impose further sanctions on Red Star Belgrade for this incident?
- Will Serbian authorities investigate the fans responsible for the tifo?
- How will this affect relations between Serbian and Bosnian football institutions?
