A multitude of regulations were ignored at the UEFA Women’s Champions League Final, when a Palestinian flag was held aloft during the opening ceremony, accusing Israel of genocide.

UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has written to Theodore Theodoridis, General Secretary of UEFA regarding this political demonstration at the Barcelona v Lyon Women’s match in Turin, Italy on 21 May 2024.

During the opening ceremony, two people held up a large Palestinian flag, emblazoned with the words “Stop Genozide – EU don’t be an accessory”.  It also included a reproduction of part of Picasso’s Guernica painting  It appeared to have the approval of UEFA since no one took any steps to remove the protestors.  After the ceremony the flag was left undisturbed, while it was spread out in a prominent position on the side of the pitch for all to see.

The presentation of this political message during the opening ceremony and throughout the game, breached a multitude of football regulations, as UKLFI has pointed out in its letter to the UEFA General Secretary.

It breached UEFA’s Safety and Security Regulations 2019, which prohibit the promotion of political messages or of any other political actions inside or in the immediate vicinity of the stadium.

The UEFA Human Rights Commitment is meant to prevent any discrimination or distinction being made on grounds of religion, political opinion, national or social origin. The display discriminated against Jewish people who support the Jewish State and against any people who support Israel and its need to defend itself from existential threat after 7 October 2023. This display made a distinction of those people, singling them out for criticism and hate.

UEFA’s Human Rights Commitment also says that “UEFA strives for an inclusive culture, in which no one is discriminated against or excluded”. However, the action at the Women’s Final discriminated against supporters of Israel and excluded their voice when an opposite view was given in peak time global media coverage.

The incident also breached Article 2 of the UEFA Statutes, which states that UEFA’s objectives “shall be to … promote football in Europe in a spirit of peace, understanding and fair play, without any discrimination on account of politics … religion, race or any other reasons … [and] promote unity among Member Associations in matters relating to European and world football”. The Israel Football Association is a Member of UEFA.

UKLFI wrote:  “This action was a breach of the spirit of peace and fair play, it was a promotion of discrimination against Israel and those who support its right to defend itself. It represented the promotion of disunity singling out one UEFA member for opprobrium.

The failure to prevent and remove the display failed all those who support Israel, take a more nuanced view, or wish to keep politics out of football.”

Many more regulations were breached including UEFA Equipment regulations, Disciplinary Regulations, Regulations of the UEFA Women’s Champions League and UEFA Authorisation Rules Governing International Club Competitions.

UKLFI has asked Mr Theodore Theodoridis to find out who carried out the political demonstration, whether it had been authorised, and if so by whom.  UKLFI also asked whether UEFA was investigating the breaches, what is the outcome of their investigations, what sanctions are being considered, and what action to be taken against those responsible for the breaches.