UEFA may change the referee of the Champions League final!

UEFA could force a change of referee for the Chamoions League final, which will face Manchester City and Inter in Istanbul on June 10, after the Pole Szymon Marciniak, appointed to lead the party, was accused of participating in a demonstration organized by a far-right party on Monday. UEFA is asking for “an urgent clarification” and will adopt a decision in the next few hours after reviewing all the evidence.

The complaint came from the Polish anti-racist group Never Again, whose co-founder, Rafal Pankowski, maintained through a statement that Marciniak “seems to have recently promoted and participated in an event organized by a Polish far-right leader, Slawomir Mentzen. We were shocked and horrified by Marciniak’s public association with Mentzen and his brand of toxic far-right politics. It is not compatible with the core values ​​of fair play such as equality and respect.”

Mentzen is the leader of the populist Konfederacja (Confederation) party, which has been accused of promoting anti-Semitic, sexist and homophobic views.

Marciniak was announced as a speaker at a business conference for entrepreneurs that took place on Monday in Katowice (Poland). Mentzen promoted the referee’s involvement on his social media channels.

UEFA statement

UEFA maintained in a statement that “the entire football community abhors the ‘values’ promoted by the group in question and takes these accusations very seriously.”

According to Pankowski, Never Again asked Marciniak to “admit your mistake. Otherwise, we believe that UEFA and FIFA should have consequences.”

The best referee today

Marciniak, 42, refereed the 2022 and 2018 World Cups and Euro 2016. He missed Euro 2020 while recovering from a heart problem following a COVID-19 infection. Last December he officiated the final of the Qatar 2022 World Cup, where Argentina beat France on penalties.