Multiple Hajduk Supporters Detained Following Anti‑Jewish Protest at Split‑Ajax UEFA Match

Croatian football fans arrested over slurs before and during UEFA Conference League game in Split.

Published On 17 Oct 202617 Oct 2026

Police in Split have detained a dozen Hajduk Split supporters after a disruptive incident during Thursday night’s UEFA Conference League match against Ajax. The fans ignited a series of protests that included anti‑Jewish insults and praise for Adolf Hitler.

The arrests followed a demonstration in which thousands of fans chanted derogatory remarks toward Jewish people and extolled Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. The crowd marched behind a vehicle carrying a mock coffin bearing Ajax’s name—a club historically tied to Amsterdam’s Jewish community.

The episode triggered swift condemnation across Croatia. President Zoran Milanovic and the government denounced the conduct and called for severe penalties. Police confirmed the detention of 12 individuals on charges of incitement to violence and hatred, noting that additional arrests remain possible.

Supporters also clashed with officers, forcing a 12‑minute stoppage as they hurled flares and other objects onto the pitch.

Hajduk ultimately secured a 2‑1 victory over Ajax, marking the club’s first major European match in 16 years.

In a statement, the Croatian Football Association said the incident damaged the nation’s football reputation and ran counter to “the basic values of sports: mutual respect, tolerance and togetherness.”

Milanovic urged the implementation of “measures and sanctions that will show that there is no place for glorification of Nazism in Croatia.”

The Croatian government faces longstanding accusations of overlooking growing nationalist and far‑right sentiments linked to the country’s World War II era, during which it collaborated with the Nazis. The administration denies these claims.

Milorad Pupovac, a political leader representing Croatia’s ethnic Serb community—who suffered under the pro‑Nazi regime—said, “It was only a matter of time before we would see an incident like the one in Split.”

During World War II, tens of thousands of ethnic Serbs, Jews, Roma, and anti‑fascist Croats perished in concentration camps run by the Croatian nationalist regime. Some nationalist groups have later repurposed a WWII pro‑Nazi chant as a symbol of Croatia’s fight for independence from the former Serb‑led Yugoslavia.

The Israeli embassy in Zagreb also condemned the event, describing it as “deeply shocking” and calling on the government to act.

Hajduk Split, which may face disciplinary action from UEFA for the match disruption, issued an apology for the fans’ actions while emphasizing that the behavior did not represent the entire supporter base.

“Despite all efforts, things happened that we are not proud of, but we are ready to take the consequences as a club,” the team said in a statement.

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