Russian Soccer Fans Marching Backward to Intolerance

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The prominent group of Zenit supporters, known as Landscrona, posted a letter on its Web site on Monday, saying it wanted to preserve the traditional identity of the team by signing only homegrown players or those from Slavic nations like Ukraine and Belarus, from the Baltic nations or from Scandinavia. The club did not have a black player until late summer and has a history of prejudiced behavior by some of its fans.

“Dark-skinned players are all but forced down Zenit’s throat now, which only brings out a negative reaction,” the fan group said, adding that gay players were “unworthy of our great city.”

Antiracism officials said the episode was another embarrassment for Russia as it prepares to host the 2018 World Cup and for Gazprom, the government-controlled natural gas company that owns Zenit St. Petersburg and is a sponsor of the Champions League, Europe’s most important club tournament.

Late Monday night, Zenit’s sporting director, Dietmar Beiersdorfer, rebuked the fan group, saying on the club Web site, “We make our player selections without any limitation regarding origin, religion or skin color.”

Zenit’s Italian manager, Luciano Spalletti, called for inclusiveness and respect of other cultures in an interview with the club’s radio network, saying that “being tolerant means that you fight against any kind of stupidity.”

Despite Zenit’s disavowal of its fan club’s demand to sign only white players, “at some point, this policy has been practiced by the club,” said Piara Powar, the executive director of the London-based FARE network, formerly known as Football Against Racism in Europe.

Zenit was the only top-level Russian club never to include a black player until early September, when it signed the Brazilian forward Hulk and the Belgian midfielder Axel Witsel for a combined $100 million. In late September, according to Russian news accounts, a fake bomb was found in a bag at Zenit’s training site, with a photograph of Hulk and the inscription, “Hulk out!”

The French midfielder Yann M’Vila, who is black, reportedly turned down a transfer to Zenit in August after receiving threats from some of the club’s most extreme supporters, known as ultras, who have a notorious saying, “There’s no black in the colors of Zenit.”

Last year, Zenit was fined about $10,000 after one of its fans offered a banana to Roberto Carlos, the onetime Brazilian great who was finishing his club career in Russia. Later last year, Carlos walked off the field before the final whistle in a match against Zenit after a banana was thrown at him.

In 2008, Zenit’s manager at the time, Dick Advocaat of the Netherlands, said, “I would be happy to sign anyone, but the fans don’t like black players.”

In 2007, Serge Branco, a midfielder from Cameroon playing in the Russian league, said he incurred repeated racial abuse by Zenit fans and added, “Zenit bosses do not do anything about it, which makes me think they are racists, too.”

European soccer has dealt with a number of high-profile instances of racial abuse since last December, including the suspensions of Luis Su?rez of Liverpool and John Terry of Chelsea in England’s Premier League. By degree, racism and xenophobia have historically been more virulent in Eastern Europe, with some fans making monkey chants and throwing bananas, and others giving Nazi salutes.

The Russian soccer federation was fined $150,000 at the European Championships last summer after some fans fought with stadium stewards and displayed nationalistic “Russian Empire” flags. Russian fans also clashed with Polish fans in Warsaw and were accused of racially taunting Theodor Gebre Selassie, the lone black player for the Czech Republic.

“People ask me, ‘Are we in crisis in Europe?’ ” Powar of the FARE antiracist organization said in a telephone interview from London. “I don’t think so. There’s not the same focus on racial tribalism as in the past. I think some big gains have been made. But some things we took for granted have been eroded away. It’s been a tough year, a step backward.”

The latest racial behavior by Zenit fans underscores the education of tolerance necessary in Russia ahead of the 2018 World Cup, said Powar, who visited Moscow last week. The Russian soccer federation “understands the problems they face; they seem determined to do what they can,” Powar said. “But in the end, Russia is a very big place. To completely eradicate elements like this is going to be very difficult.”

Some antiracism officials have criticized the muted response by European soccer officials to the latest Zenit incident. UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, has asked Zenit to clarify its position on the signing of players. Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, which has called for zero tolerance of racism, could not be reached for comment. The FIFA Web site did not address the issue Monday or Tuesday.

“Where is the world governing body in its denouncement?” said Lord Herman Ouseley of London, chairman of the antiracist group Kick it Out.

Last week, Ouseley resigned a position with the English soccer federation, saying he thought it was retreating in its fight against racism. Of the demand by Zenit fans, he said from London: “It stands out because it’s gone public. But a lot of people are trying to articulate prejudices in different ways, behind the scenes, with a lot of pressure applied.”

Given the growing diversity on Europe’s elite club teams, adherence to a policy of racial purity would only limit the breadth of Zenit’s player pool and lead to isolation and failure, Powar said.

“Perhaps that is no bad thing,” he said.

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