Australian TV presenter Lucy Zelić has called for lifetime bans and a mandatory educational course for those involved in the “devastating and embarrassing” scenes during the Australia Cup final.
A loud chorus of boos could be hear during the Welcome to Country and also throughout the playing of the national anthem on Saturday night.
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When the game got underway the Network 10 broadcast captured fans in attendance appearing to be doing Nazi salutes.
Zelić, who was a sports presenter for SBS until she left the network last year, took to Twitter to express her horror.
“I’m a proud Croatian. I was raised by two immigrants who lost friends and family in the war – my Aunty Tereža was tragically killed after stepping on a rogue mine right near her home,” she explained. “Our history is laced with much struggle, grief and loss but immense resilience.
“Growing up with an ethnic background, I knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of racism and was often told, ‘f*** of back to Croatia wog’. I was confused because Australia was my home and we were so, so proud of it.
“I was born in the 80s and was never raised to be a fascist, racist or antisemitic – it wasn’t an option. We knew what being treated differently because of your ethnicity, and losing loved ones in senseless war felt like.
“What happened at last night’s @AustraliaCup Final was shocking and simply devastating, and I didn’t want to believe it. It was the first time I felt embarrassed by the actions of my fellow countrymen and I wasn’t alone.”
The final was between Macarthur FC and Sydney United 58, which was formed as Sydney Croatia in 1958 by Croatian-Australians in the area and later renamed in the ’90s.
Zelić said the fans’ behaviour was not a true representation of Croatians or the football club, but its reputation had been tarnished.
“ … many of them appeared to be teenagers who simply don’t know how deeply the ramifications of their actions run,” she said.
Zelić, who is a mum of two, said she wanted those guilty to “face the full arm of the law” and also be required to take a “mandatory educational course on history”.
“Show them photographs from the Auschwitz concentration camps,” she said.
“Make them listen to countless stories from survivors so that they won’t pass on these indefensible beliefs to their children. Change, after all, comes from a place of acceptance and understanding and you cannot change what you don’t know.”
Other sports presenters also slammed the behaviour as an “embarrassment”.
The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies have called for “strong action”, including lifetime bans.
“These vile symbols and salutes have no place in modern Australian society,” CEO Darren Bark said in a statement provided to news.com.au.
“They represent the ultimate manifestation of evil – an evil which led to the murder of millions of innocent civilians during WWII, including six million Jews and thousands of Australian Diggers who lost their lives fighting against the Nazis during WWII.
“Reprehensible conduct such as this causes immense distress to the victims of Nazi crimes and their descendants, whilst undermining our cohesive multicultural society.
“The fact that the Welcome to Country and national anthem was also booed last night underlines the contempt these people have for Australia and our Diggers.”
Football Australia said “there is absolutely no place for anti-social behaviour in our game” and promised “strong and swift action” would be taken.
FA said it was working with NSW Police and holding discussions with Sydney United 58 FC about the behaviour of certain fans, “which could lead to both individual and club sanctions.”
On the night, eight people were evicted from the stadium.
