VfB Stuttgart’s travel warning sounded more dramatic than some that the Foreign Office has issued in recent years. Before the Champions League game at Red Star Belgrade (Wednesday, 6:45 p.m.), “people, vehicles and luggage” would be checked by police at the border crossings to Serbia, according to the announcement from VfB fan support. Afterwards we will continue to Belgrade with police escort before a “block closure of up to two hours” is imposed after the game. And for everyone who hasn’t yet understood what the hour has come, a member of the Stuttgart club’s advisory board emphasized on “X” that it is strongly advised against purchasing tickets for the home area at the venue: “The Belgrade club side urgently warned against this , to buy tickets outside the guest area or even to move around in the home area. Otherwise there would be a “life-threatening danger.”
In comparison, the suggestion that hard money would be confiscated at the stadium gates seemed rather harmless. “In Serbia, coins are considered a prohibited item (“projectile”) and are taken at the entrance,” explained the VfB. The fact that Swabians of all people are assumed to be able to throw around their hard-earned change has humorous aspects. However, such a measure is not unusual in southeastern Europe. Cash was also taken from Schalke fans who accompanied their team to the game at PAOK Saloniki in 2017.
In fact, the Rajko Mitic Stadium in Belgrade is risky terrain, and the derby against Partizan is one of the most conflict-prone in Europe. In addition, it cannot be denied that the willingness to use violence is so pronounced in many areas of Eastern and Southeastern Europe that families with children avoid visiting, especially in explosive couples. On the other hand, the local affinity for violence is exerting a growing fascination on many local ultra scenes. However, generalizations are out of the question: fan scenes in Eastern Europe have also become very differentiated; many friendships that have been established between Saxon and Czech fan groups, for example, have contributed to a reduction in mutual prejudice among young people in the border region. It is not known how Belgrade city marketing received the warnings from Stuttgart. Otherwise, people are more likely to warn about “danger to life” when traveling to regions dominated by drug cartels or to war zones.
There is controversy in the Stuttgart fan scene as to whether the warning from the VfB fan department should have been so dramatic – or whether it led to unfounded paranoia. Some fans who have been in good spirits in Serbia since Sunday are said to have asked worriedly whether they would even be allowed to go out on the streets until Thursday. However, there are some indications that the warnings were so drastic because VfB also counts many unsuspecting supporters among its supporters, who assume that a trip to Heidenheim means away games as such. And anyone who behaves as carefree as a guest fan in Belgrade as they do on the regional express from Ulm to Heidenheim is really showing an increased willingness to take risks. You probably won’t see VfB fans singing happily in the central places of life – as happened in Madrid or Turin – on Wednesday afternoon.
A Euroleague basketball game is likely to worsen the situation in Belgrade
Experienced groundhoppers, i.e. people who collect stadium visits like other people collect stamps, have a more relaxed forecast for Wednesday’s game. It is said that if you don’t behave like a German Mallorca tourist who fits the stereotype, you won’t risk any more in Belgrade than in other rougher locations. After all, even in Marseille you shouldn’t stroll around the Old Port wearing a Paris jersey, and in Cologne chants of “Hurrah, hurray, the Gladbachers are here” aren’t a particularly brilliant idea either.
Whether with or without coins – the vast majority of Stuttgart fans will probably be back in tranquil Swabia by Thursday evening. However, things could continue to be turbulent in Belgrade after the Champions League game. Partizan, the – and here the word really applies – Red Star’s hated local rivals, plays the next day in the Euroleague against Olympiacos Piraeus. It’s about basketball, but that plays a minor role in the case. In many southern and eastern European countries, football ultras and hooligans also support their clubs’ basketball players. The fact that the violent faction of Red Star is good friends with that of Olympiakos could not mean anything good for both Wednesday and Thursday.
After all, many Olympiakos fans are likely to be in Belgrade the day before and then join the friends from the Red Star on Thursday to fight with Partizan fans. Those of the 2,400 expected VfB fans who want to stay in Belgrade after the game to see the city should not necessarily go to the pedestrian zone or the Nikola Tesla Museum on Thursday wearing a fan jersey. This warning can of course also be found in the Stuttgart fan information.
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