1. Letter of support – complaint against the UEFA decision of 4 September 2026 in the case of FK Borac Banja Luka (and related behaviour by FK Crvena zvezda) due to the repeated glorification of the convicted war criminal Ratko Mladi?;

 

Initiative: “WORLD FOR BOSNIA”

To:
UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body
Nyon, Switzerland
via e-mail: discipline@uefa.ch

Date: 8 September 2026 

Subject:

Dear Sir/Madam,

We, the undersigned associations of citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the diaspora, gathered within the initiative “World for Bosnia”, hereby express our full support for the appeals submitted on 1 September 2026 by the Association of Victims and Witnesses of Genocide and the association “Mothers of the Enclaves of Srebrenica and Žepa” from Sarajevo.

We share deep concern regarding the repeated and documented glorification of Ratko Mladi?—an individual who has been legally finally convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes—by supporters of FK Borac Banja Luka, as well as ongoing incidents involving supporters of FK Crvena zvezda Belgrade.

UEFA on 4 September 2026 (only three days after the letter from Sarajevo) already imposed sanctions on FK Borac Banja Luka and FK Crvena zvezda for earlier incidents. The sanctions imposed were symbolic given the seriousness, recurrence and context of the offence, and as such are completely ineffective. Evidence of this is the fact that incidents continued at the match between Crvena Zvezda and Partizan on 6 September.

We emphasise that this is no longer only about displaying the image of a person who committed the only (legally established) genocide on European soil after the Second World War, but also about displaying the text “Route to Poto?ari”, which served as the introduction to the massacre of 8,372 people. The display of that text cannot be interpreted otherwise than as a threatening allusion—calling for the repetition of genocide.

Therefore, with this letter, we do not ask only for stricter disciplinary measures against the clubs in the future, but also that UEFA seriously takes into account the broader responsibility of Serbia as a state—particularly because of the way Ratko Mladi?’s remains were publicly received in Serbia and the way his funeral was carried out on 7 September 2026.

We emphasise that Mladi?’s mortal remains were received with state and military honours. Here we stress that the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia established that more than one thousand officers of the Army of Bosnian Serbs, as well as Mladi? himself, during the aggression against the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, were on the payroll of the regime of Slobodan Miloševi? in Serbia (Mladi? was on the payroll until the spring of 2001—which means six years after the end of the war and the aggression against the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina).

And instead of Serbia in 2026 distancing itself from the legacy of that man—“the butcher from the Balkans”—a plane of the Government of Serbia participated in transporting the body, which was received by the Minister of Justice and representatives of the Army of Serbia. Members of the Army of Serbia also carried the coffin—wrapped in the flag of the Republic of Serbia—under police escort. The memorial ceremony on 5 September 2026 was held in the House of the Army with large public gatherings and banners such as: “Eternal glory, general!” or “Thank you, ‘?enerale’!” Pro-government media call him a “Serbian general” and for days spread praise. According to the Belgrade-based Humanitarian Law Fund (Fond for Humanitarian Law), “practically there is no city without one mural of Mladi?”. The same applies in the entity Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

Minister of Justice Nenad Vuji? last week, at a press conference of Mladi?’s family, presented a whole list of steps that the Government of Serbia took ahead of his death. 

At yesterday’s funeral ceremony, Danilo Vu?i?, on behalf of his father, President of Serbia Aleksandar Vu?i?, paid tribute to Ratko Mladi? during the service in church, which was officiated by the Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), Porfirije. Here we emphasise that during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1994, the SPC lost in court against the publications Liberation, Le Monde and Le Figaro (especially regarding the text “La solidarité orthodoxe”) before the 17th investigating chamber of the Court in Paris. In that article, among other things, it was emphasised that the SPC supports ethnic cleansing and crimes of genocide against the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the war of the 1990s, and the court rejected the SPC’s lawsuit for defamation as unfounded, considering that the journalists wrote in good faith and based on facts.

The ceremony in Belgrade was also attended by the Ambassador of the Russian Federation, Khar?enko, the Minister of Defence of Serbia G?ši?, the Minister of Justice Vuji?, the Minister of Culture Selakovi?, the Minister for Public Investments Gliši? and other officials.

Earlier, a Serbian government official (granted anonymity so that he could speak openly) insisted that the Serbian state was not directly involved in the events of Monday, 31 August. “The commemorative gathering is not organised by the Ministry of Defence nor by the General Staff of the Army of Serbia, but by an association of retired generals,” he said, adding that Mladi? would not be honoured with burial in the Alley of Greats or the Alley of Distinguished Citizens (Politico.eu, 4 September 2026).

The Irish Minister for Europe, Thomas Byrne, who on Friday in Dublin chairs the meeting of candidate countries for EU membership, stated that although “there actually is no state funeral (…) it is quite possible that senior government officials will pay tribute to that man, and that is not acceptable.” “It is certainly time to bury the past and work and move forward with reconciliation in that region,” Byrne added. “What is happening there, I think, still hurts people, especially in the region, but also in some EU member states.”

Mr Byrne is more than right, and we believe that it is precisely UEFA that could and should, through clear and decisive measures against the Football Association of Serbia, de-escalate the newly emerging situation. We also emphasise the cross-border dimension between Serbia and the entity Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Incidents related to supporters of FK Borac Banja Luka and FK Crvenazvezda take place within the same space of political, media and football influence, where the same (sometimes even fascist) symbols, slogans and messages glorifying mass crimes and their perpetrators circulate.

Recent events directly encourage an atmosphere in which genocide and its glorification are normalised at stadiums, and on 6 September 2026, at the largest stadium in Serbia, “Rajko Miti?”, a new genocide is directly called for by a leaflet containing the command: “ROUTE TO POTO?ARI!”, while direct perpetrators—war criminals convicted by the International Court (ICTY)—are publicly turned into heroes through a kind of cult of personality.

That match began with a minute of silence—and that is what will be remembered, rather than the fact that Crvena zvezdawon that 180th derby 2–1.

Article 16(2)(e) of UEFA’s Disciplinary Regulations allows sanctions for clubs and associations due to gestures, words, objects or other means used to convey political, ideological, religious or offensive messages inappropriate for a sporting event, even when the club claims it is not responsible for their appearance. Article 14 for discriminatory conduct provides for a fine along with at least partial closure of the stadium or restriction of ticket sales, and depending on the circumstances and the match, closure of the stadium, deprivation of points or exclusion from the competition. Finally, Article 25 provides that a similar offence committed within two years constitutes a repetition of the offence, i.e., an aggravating circumstance. In this regard, UEFA should impose robust sanctions not only against clubs but also against the Football Association of Serbia, which in the right way responds to this behaviour—behaviour that is transmitted to streets and cities as well, generally affecting the overall situation not only in specific areas but across the entire Western Balkans region, and beyond. This can be neutralised only by imposing adequate, specific and preventive measures. So far, it is obvious that these have not produced results.

We recall that after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, UEFA excluded Russian clubs from European competitions. In addition, the then Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) was expelled from the EURO 1992 due to UN sanctions—again because of participation in the aggression against the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina following its declaration of independence on 1 March 1992 and its admission to the United Nations on 22 May 1992—something that Serbia still denies today (even though it is proven in multiple ICTY judgments—the cases Tadi?, ?elebi?i, Mladi?, Simatovi?/Staniši?, and also established in the judgment of the International Court of Justice in The Hague in the case brought by the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina against Serbia for genocide, dated 26 February 2007).

In that judgment, among other things, it was established that Serbia is responsible for failing to prevent genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina and thereby violated the 1948 Genocide Convention (Article I and Article VI).

On the other hand, the regime in Belgrade under the leadership of Aleksandar Vu?i? has for years destabilised the entire region in various ways through the so-called “Serbian World” special political project, which directly undermines the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kosovo, Montenegro and especially Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition, the glorification of convicted war criminals, hiding them in Serbia (as Mladi? was kept there for an entire decade before his arrest, but also as general Novak ?uki?) or providing them refuge (as the accused general Radmilo Željaja) shows that Vu?i?’s Serbia is still in conflict with neighbours, and sometimes with the rest of Europe.

Today’s Serbia, although in principle, has never recognized the decisions of these international courts, and thus neither the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina committed in the 1990s—where the court established that it did not prevent it.

We would like to stress that we do not want to mix football and politics. However, as can be seen, in Serbia politics has long and aggressively been entering football pitches, as well as around the world (for example, the most recent World Cup in North America), turning stadiums into spaces for the rehabilitation of convicted criminals and for spreading ethnonationalist hatred, and even calls for genocide (partial or complete extermination of a certain group).

We are Bosnians and Herzegovinians—citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina of different ethnic and religious backgrounds. Most of us were displaced during and after the aggression of neighbouring countries against our country in the 1990s, but many of us have also long been integrated citizens and residents of the countries in which we live. Many of our compatriots play in European clubs and represent national teams of the countries in which they live. Our children—girls and boys—play football in the cities where they were born and live throughout Europe. Precisely through and thanks to football, they have a happy childhood in environments that have accepted them and are building in them physically healthy and decent people: future doctors, teachers, police officers, drivers, conductors, footballers and football coaches (for whom football has become the best therapy for war traumas)—all of which was denied to us 30 years ago.

We believe there is no need to explain how these children feel on pitches or in stands where the greatest criminals after the Second World War are glorified, and how it feels to play against those who are themselves a product of that genocide-inciting, anti-civilisational ideology.

That is precisely why we feel responsible to oppose the relativisation and normalisation of the proven genocide on European soil and the glorification of war crimes and adjudicated mass murderers within European football.

The chanting and glorification of Ratko Mladi? is not an abstract political message. It is salt rubbed into the open wounds of survivors and families of victims who are European citizens in the countries from which we come—as well as in all other places—where, in stadiums, in public space and through the media, severe trauma and PTSD are reactivated again and again. For us, it is the same as if, at European stadiums, people were chanting Adolf Hitler’s name, while Jews around the world watch and listen. UEFA should no longer tolerate such humiliation of victims.

In this sense, it is necessary in the future to prevent various political interpretations of the past—Ratko Mladi? has been finally convicted by an international court for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Glorifying such a person at European football stadiums cannot be treated as a harmless fan expression. This is a kind of retrograde political message, interpreted in the language of hatred, and it must be sanctioned at its root, in an appropriate manner.

For days now, from multiple independent sources, we have been following public outrage across Europe, as well as clear reactions from governments and European institutions. In particular, we highlight the decision of European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, who on 4 September 2026 cancelled a planned visit to Belgrade precisely because of the glorification that accompanied Ratko Mladi?’s death. Commissioner Kos publicly stated that such glorification is “incompatible with the values on which the path to the European Union is built” and that those values “are not subject to negotiation.”

We believe that it is precisely UEFA, within its competences toward national associations and clubs, that can and must send a clear message that European football stadiums cannot be a place for normalising and glorifying finally convicted war criminals.

Such behaviour needs to be examined in light of several provisions of UEFA’s Disciplinary Regulations, in particular Article 11(2), points (b), (c) and (d), Article 14, and Article 16(2), point (e). In particular, we draw attention to Article 16(2), point (e), which covers the use of gestures, words, objects or other means to convey provocative messages inappropriate for a sporting event, including messages of a political, ideological or insulting nature.

In addition, such behaviour is also contrary to Article 145a of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, under which glorification of war criminals, genocide and war crimes is prescribed as a criminal offence. Such provisions do not exist in the law of the Republic of Serbia—in fact, they do not.

As stated in the letter from the associations from Sarajevo dated 1 September, the glorification of Mladi? and similar figures is not an isolated phenomenon. It is part of a broader, cross-border extremist ecosystem. Anders Behring Breivik, in his manifesto, positively referred to the Dutch politician Geert Wilders, but also to the former leader of Bosnian Serbs Radovan Karadži? (also convicted for genocide) and Ratko Mladi?. Brenton Tarrant, before the terrorist attack in Christchurch, played a song that glorified Radovan Karadži? and referenced the Balkan wars of the 1990s and the narrative “Remove Kebab.” These examples show how an ideology that glorifies the perpetrators of genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina turns into inspiration for mass killings and terrorist attacks in Europe and beyond.

The same extremist narratives have been penetrating stadiums across Europe for years (SS Lazio, AC Sparta Prague, formerly Zenit St. Petersburg and others). UEFA has reacted in those cases. We are simply asking for the same consistency. FC Sparta’s management has already publicly distanced itself from the Mladi? pamphlet “RIP General” at the recent match against Slavia, and we welcomed and felt relief at that act, while Czech police launched an investigation.

In this regard, we also point to Articles 23 and 25 of UEFA’s Disciplinary Regulations, under which, when determining disciplinary measures, aggravating and mitigating circumstances are taken into account, while repetition of offences of a similar nature (recidivism) is explicitly considered an aggravating circumstance. Therefore, we insist that UEFA, when assessing these cases and determining measures, take into account previous incidents and previously imposed sanctions. In connection with this, we remind you of the inappropriately lenient punishment that was quickly imposed on the club Borac from Banja Luka, a city in the entity of Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, because even that was not an isolated case.

Last but not least: we would like to refer to UN General Assembly Resolution 78/282, adopted on 23 May 2024. It explicitly condemns the denial of genocide in Srebrenica, but also actions that glorify individuals convicted of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. UN member states are required to implement this resolution, and some have already done so. It is time for UEFA to do the same. This letter is not based only on our feelings, on awakened PTSD, or on political interpretation, but on the principle of international law confirmed at the highest international level. That means not only that the Football Association of Serbia should implement this resolution, but also UEFA and FIFA and all national associations.

Therefore, we respectfully ask UEFA to:

Football stadiums must not become a platform (and they have become one) for the rehabilitation of mass murderers—more precisely, of genocide perpetrators. UEFA has both regulations and institutional responsibility to prevent this—consistently and without double standards.

This letter is signed by associations of citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the diaspora from the following countries (alphabetical order) united in the initiative “World for Bosnia”:
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Croatia, Italy, Luxembourg, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland.

The letter is additionally supported by associations from Australia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Canada, as well as by the World Federation of the Bosnian diaspora.

The “World for Bosnia” organisation is at your disposal for any additional information.

With respect,

On behalf of the signed associations of citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the diaspora: 

Supported by associations from:
Australia (Bosnian Community Council New South Wales – Safet Alispahi?)
Bosnia and Herzegovina (OPTIMISTI 2004 – Satko Mujagi?)
Canada (Institute for Research of Genocide – Emir Rami?)
World Federation of Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Diaspora – Mujo Hamzi? 

World for Bosnia
e-mail: worldforbosnia@gmail.com