A top football official in Moscow has praised the Russian fans involved in violence over the weekend in Marseille, saying they had defended their country’s honour and should be forgiven.
“I don’t see anything wrong with the fans fighting,” Igor Lebedev wrote on Twitter. “Quite the opposite, well done lads, keep it up!”
Lebedev, who sits on the executive committee of the Russian football union, is an MP from the nationalist Liberal Democratic party and the deputy chairman of the Russian parliament.
“I don’t understand those politicians and officials who are criticising our fans. We should defend them, and then we can sort it out when they come home,” Lebedev wrote in a series of tweets.
“What happened in Marseille and in other French towns is not the fault of fans, but about the inability of police to organise this kind of event properly.”
Calls to his office went unanswered yesterday, but the Twitter account is believed to be genuine and the sentiments were echoed in comments given to the news website life.ru.
“In nine out of 10 cases, football fans go to games to fight, and that’s normal. The lads defended the honour of their country and did not let English fans desecrate our motherland. We should forgive and understand our fans,” Lebedev told the news agency.
He added that it was unfair that Russian fans were being targeted for criticism when it was England fans who had begun the violence, and also noted that there had been violence involving other fans at the tournament, including ahead of the match between Poland and Northern Ireland.
“Our fans are far from the worst; it’s unclear why a lot of media are trying to say our fans’ actions were shameful. You should be objective. If there had been no provocation from English fans, it’s unlikely our fans would have got into fights in the stands.”
Lebedev’s comments are likely to raise huge concern, given that Russia is due to host the World Cup in two years. Their tone is in contrast to that of the sports minister, Vitaly Mutko, who criticised the fans involved in fighting.
Mutko initially downplayed the clashes saying media had exaggerated them, but later admitted it was right for UEFA to bring disciplinary proceedings against Russia and condemned the clashes. “It’s clear that some people didn’t come here to watch football. They’ve covered their faces and then brought shame on their country,” he said.
Mutko was criticised for standing on the pitch after the final whistle and appearing to egg on Russian fans, just metres from where clashes with England fans were taking place. Lebedev suggested that if Mutko had been in the stands, he would have joined in the fighting.
“We ought to thank him for not being indifferent to football, and for the fact that he doesn’t just get involved in the sporting side but also gives a lot of attention to work with the supporters... I personally think that if Mutko had been with the fans in the stands and was not an official, he would have also have got into the fight with the England fans, because they provoked it.”