Investigation launched into youth football match chants

Screen grab of the Tammeka-Levadia U-17 Eliitliiga full-time whistle.
Screen grab of the Tammeka-Levadia U-17 Eliitliiga full-time whistle. Source: ERR

The Estonian Football Association has initiated disciplinary proceedings after young fans at an Under-17 football match in Tartu last weekend reportedly chanted anti-Russian slurs, ERR's Sport portal reports.

The incident occurred during the U-17 age group Eliitliiga clash between Tammeka, a Tartu team, and FCI Levadia, from Tallinn, over the weekend.

Tammeka were the home team in the match, played at the Sepa Jalgpallikeskus.

Levadia, the visitors, issued a statement afterwards, noting that Tammeka's fans had shouted slurs relating to ethnic Russians in Estonia, or Russians more broadly.

Levadia said that: "To label us with such terms represents an insult to the entire club. Anyone who attends our home games or follows us on social media and elsewhere knows what our position is on the Russian war on Ukraine. We would like to add that all the players in the Levadia U-17 Eliitliiga team all have Estonian citizenship."

In the event, Levadia won the game 2:1.

Tammeka's director Kristjan Tiirik told Tartu Postimees that he had personally communicated with the club's U-17 coaches, parents and other coaches of the football school present in the stands, and that the people who behaved provocatively, all of them minors, who attend Tammeka training, during the game had been identified. 

Tiirik also issued an apology to Levadia over the incident.

Development director of the Estonian Football Association, the EJL, and member of its disciplinary committee Mihkel Uiboleht told Delfi Sport that the league has initiated a procedure regarding the conflict.

He said events of this kind were exceptional, happening around once every five years.

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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Kristina Kersa, Anders Nõmm

Source: ERR Sport

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