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Szymon Marciniak, the world's most cached referee, gave a speech at a rally organized by Slawomir Mentzen, leader of Poland's far-right. This was denounced by the anti-racist organization Never Again. Now UEFA is considering taking punitive measures that can separate Marciniak from his next big task: to whistle the Champions League final between Inter Milan and Manchester City, on June 10 in Istanbul.
The Guardian newspaper reported on Thursday afternoon that UEFA has taken the complaint very seriously. European football's governing body, responsible for ongoing campaigns against violence and racism, issued a statement: "UEFA is aware of the allegations surrounding Szymon Marciniak and seeks urgent clarification. UEFA and the entire football community abhors the 'values' promoted by the group in question and takes the allegations very seriously. We will announce a decision this Friday after reviewing all the evidence."
According to the complaint, Marciniak, the man who blew the final of the Qatar World Cup, participated as a speaker in a public beer tasting and networking event organized by Mentzen on May 29. Mentzen is the leader of the Confederation Party, famous for slogans such as "We are against Jews, gays, abortion, taxes and the European Union." In 2021, Mentzen became famous for launching a beer called White Indian Pale Ale Matters, in a sardonic reference to the Black Lives Matters movement, which emerged to protest against the killings of black citizens at the hands of the police.
Marciniak, 42, attended the Metzen event on May 29. The poster promoting it under the title Everest showed Mentzen drinking beer and Marciniak in uniform as a FIFA referee. Metzen himself announced the presence of the judge on his Facebook account and Mentzen shared it on the same social network.
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