After scandalous cheers

UEFA confirms! Demiral banned for two games

Now it's official! UEFA has banned Merih Demiral for two matches.(Bild: AFP)

On Friday afternoon, UEFA officially confirmed that Merih Demiral will be banned for two matches after his wolf salute celebration. The defender will therefore miss Saturday's quarter-final against the Netherlands (9pm). 

The UEFA Disciplinary Chamber has banned Turkish player Merih Demiral for two games for showing the salute of the right-wing extremist Turkish movement "Gray Wolves" in the round of 16 of the European Football Championship against Austria. Demiral, who scored both goals in the 2:1 win against the ÖFB team, will therefore miss Turkey's quarter-final against the Netherlands on Saturday and a possible semi-final.

The European Football Union (UEFA) justified its decision on Friday by stating that Demiral had "failed to observe the general principles of conduct, violated the basic rules of good behavior, used sporting events for demonstrations of a non-sporting nature and brought the sport of soccer into disrepute".

Now it's official! UEFA has banned Merih Demiral for two matches.(Bild: AFP)

Cheering became a political issue
The wolf salute usually expresses affiliation or sympathy with the Turkish far-right Ülkücü movement and its ideology. Demiral had justified the gesture with "pride and joy" and denied a "hidden message".

The case has since become a political issue. German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser had called the gesture unacceptable. Turkey summoned the German ambassador and Germany responded with the same diplomatic step in return. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced his visit to Berlin for the match against the Netherlands.