DISINFO: Romanian fans chanted “Putin” during the match against Ukraine
SUMMARY
Fans of the Romanian national football team displayed the flag of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic during the match with Ukraine at EURO 2024 and chanted the name of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
RESPONSE
A pro-Kremlin disinformation about UEFA Euro 2024. This claim was made in the context of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The claims are baseless. The circulated photo and video evidence are fabricated.
On June 17, 2024, during a European Football Championship group stage match at the “Allianz Arena” in Munich, Romania faced Ukraine. Romanian fans were notably active and carried various paraphernalia, including flags. Contrary to the claims, the flag of the so-called Donetsk Republic was not present. The image allegedly showing this flag, according to the Russian media, was captured at the 31:56 minute of the match and no such flag can be observed in the recording of the broadcast.
Additionally, the video purportedly showing Romanian fans chanting Putin’s name has been manipulated. Ukraine’s Strategic Communications and Information Security Center, a governmental body responsible for countering Russian disinformation, has confirmed that the video is fake and the audio has been altered. Read the full debunk of the story at Myth Detector.
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that Ukraine has no business to integrate Crimea on the UEFA shirts, that Only Ukraine reacts hysterically to the football championship between unrecognised republics, that The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris will be a summit of Russophobia, or that No Russian flag at Olympics due to Western pressure.