The beautiful game can sometimes be ugly

The European Championship, aka the Euros, has been underway for just one week, but it’s already turning political. Serbia wants UEFA, soccer’s European governing body, to whip out a red card for Croatia and Albania over allegations their fans shouted anti-Serbian slurs during a match on Wednesday.

“Kill, kill, kill the Serb,” the fans allegedly chanted. It’s fair to say that Serbia felt this was extremely offside — and the country is threatening to quit the competition if action isn’t taken.

All of this reflects the long-running tensions in the Balkans linked to the 1990s Yugoslav Wars.

“What happened is scandalous,” said Jovan Surbatovic, general secretary of the Football Association of Serbia. “If UEFA doesn’t punish them, we will think about how to proceed.”

Relatedly, UEFA on Wednesday canceled the credentials of a Kosovar journalist for allegedly making a nationalist gesture toward Serbian fans during Sunday’s Serbia vs. England match. Serbian and Albanian fans also scored own goals of sorts by displaying nationalist banners at games, leading to fines from UEFA.