FFA Demands Removal of Azerbaijani 'Karabakh' Club from European Cup Tournaments

In the last month, the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA) has lodged numerous complaints with UEFA and FIFA regarding the militant statements, militaristic behavior, and anti-Armenian posts from various representatives of Azerbaijani football. This was announced in a statement by the Football Federation of Armenia.

“Most of these complaints are currently under investigation by UEFA's Disciplinary and Ethics Committee. The reprehensible, militarized, and politicized stance of Azerbaijani football representatives has been evident for about a month, but what circulated on the internet today is horrifying and violates all civilizational and moral standards,” the statement said.

The representative of the 'Karabakh' football club's press and public relations department, Nurlan Ibrahimov, made a post on one of his official social media pages, literally calling for the killing of all Armenians — the elderly, women, and children — without distinction. He also justified the fact that Turkey carried out genocide against Armenians. Ibrahimov has since deleted the post, but of course, hundreds of users had seen and saved it.

It is difficult to describe the actions of the Azerbaijani club's representative in words. This is not part of the series of “ordinary” posts by Azerbaijani football officials, after which the FFA has demanded not to militarize and politicize football. This is a call for violence based on ethnicity and a vicious propaganda of actual genocide by a representative of a club participating in a tournament held under UEFA's auspices.

UEFA is the organization that consistently monitors the non-politicization of football and eliminates intolerance among members of the football family, establishing solidarity. Nurlan Ibrahimov's intolerable action deserves appropriate response from UEFA. Any other approach would imply that the acceptable slogans circulated before international football meetings are merely formalities.

The Football Federation of Armenia has sent a corresponding complaint to UEFA demanding the strictest punishment for both the aforementioned employee and the Azerbaijani club, including their removal from European cup tournaments. Hate speech, calls for violence, and intolerance must be eradicated from football, adhering to the values accepted within the European football family,” the statement concluded.