Demiral ban purely political, casts shadow over Euros: Erdoğan
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan shakes hand with national footballer Merih Demiral, in Berlin, Germany, July 6, 2024. (DHA Photo)


Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has thrown his support behind the national footballer Merih Demiral, calling his ban purely political and a punishment for the whole country.

Speaking to journalists on his return journey from Berlin, the president said the decision by UEFA cast a shadow over the Euro 2024 tournament.

Demiral was sanctioned by the European football body for making the wolf sign after scoring in the last-16 against Austria.

In the West, the wolf sign is wrongly attributed, among other things, to a far-right extremist movement known as "grey wolves."

There was outrage in Türkiye but Erdogan did not comment on the ban until returning from attending the team's 2-1 quarterfinal defeat against the Netherlands on Saturday night.

"The punishment against Merih is not about Merih personally. In fact, it is a punishment given to Türkiye as a nation," Erdoğan said.

"To be honest, UEFA's two-match ban on Merih has cast a serious shadow over the championship. It is inexplicable, it is a purely political decision."

"Thank God it did not affect the morale and motivation of our national players. Despite all these negativities, our national football team has given such a football school as the Netherlands a very hard time."

"Our national team responded to the injustice done to them with the spectacular football they played on the field. I wholeheartedly congratulate our internationals who did their best until the last second and made us feel great excitement and pride," he added.