UEFA has launched an investigation into national football player Merih Demiral, who celebrated by signing the “Bozkurt” sign after scoring a goal against Austria in the round of 16 at EURO 2024. While the TFF is preparing a comprehensive defence file, Demiral said his actions contained no message.
President Erdogan to Berlin
Erdogan will be in Berlin to watch the match between Turkiye and the Netherlands, which kicks off at 10pm GMT on Saturday. Erdogan’s decision to watch the quarter-final match in Germany is said to have been influenced by UEFA’s decision to open an investigation into national team player Merih Demiral.
After the investigation began, responses flooded in from Turkey, and Meliha Demiral also received messages of support.
Criticizing Germany’s attitude, Dr. Nuran Yildiz said, “Germany is looking in other countries for the ghost of the far-right rising in its own country. He is trying to cleanse himself of his political and historical sins through football players.” Prof. Dr. Bariş Erdoğan said, “For foreigners who fight against racism in their daily lives and struggle to protect and preserve their identity, the symbol of the Grey Wolf is a symbol of both Turkishness and unity and solidarity among them.”
Samples were collected
The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) immediately prepared a comprehensive defense file. After this encounter, the authorities knew that Melih could be investigated in this regard, so they added a compilation of previous cases to the defense. In a late-night operation, the Serbian “Cetnik salute” and the Albanian “double-headed eagle” were laid out on the table. FIFA fined Shaqiri and Xhaka 10,000 Swiss francs each and Lichtsteiner 5,000 Swiss francs for making the gesture of the double-headed eagle, a symbol of Albania, despite wearing a Swiss jersey during a 2018 World Cup qualifier. At EURO 2024, UEFA punished Serbia and Albania for alleged racism. In the 2019-20 season, UEFA reprimanded Başakşehir players for celebrating a goal with a gun salute during a UEFA Europa League match against Austrian representative Wolfsberger.
From Bozkurt symbol to Bozkurt symbol
Grey wolf; a sacred animal and national symbol in Turkish, Mongolian and Altai mythology. Some claim that the symbol was transmitted to the Turks from Buddhist culture. It is also said that the Turkish khans used it as a sign of victory, meaning “success”. “I am a Turk”. It is claimed that the Turks of the Huns, Kipchaks and Pecheneg tribes used the symbol to indicate their ancestry, meaning “I am a Turk”. The grey wolf sign became established in Turkish politics in 1991, when Alparslan Türkes, the founding chairman of the MHP, greeted participants of a rally in Baku with a “grey wolf” sign.
Merih Demidral: No messages
On Merih Demiral making the grey wolf sign while celebrating his goal, he said: “I am very proud to be Turkish so I felt it in my bones after the goal. “There is no message, I just wanted to show how proud and happy I am.” Demiral included the Turkish flag in his social media post and said: “Turks stand up!” “There is no limit to height,” he said.
