Recurring, the subject of anti-Semitism among Lazio supporters once again sullied the Rome derby, won by Lazio (1-0) on Sunday. “A whole bend singing anti-Semitic choirs, a”supporter” in the stands with a Hitlerson jersey and the number 88 (used in the neo-Nazi movement to mean “Heil Hitler”, Editor’s note) and we, as always, the only ones to be indignant and protest”wrote this Monday Ruth Dureghello, the president of the Jewish community of the Italian capital.
These denunciations come just 12 days after the Italian Federation announced the opening of an investigation into alleged anti-Semitic slogans chanted by Lazio fans during their team’s match in Naples (1-0) on March 3. Italian Sports Minister Andrea Abodi responded to the Jewish community’s tweet on Monday: “Impossible to act as if nothing had happened. I will do my part, as I feel the duty to do. Respect is a due and is non-negotiable. »
A serious accumulation
The phenomenon intensifies. In January, the north corner of the Stadio Olimpico, which brings together the ultras of Lazio, was closed for a match after racist cries from these supporters during a trip to Lecce, targeting Samuel Umtiti and Lameck Banda. And the last Roman derby, won by Lazio (1-0) in November, required the opening of an investigation by the Italian Federation against these same tifosi.
In 2017, the ultras of Lazio also distinguished themselves by hijacking an image of Anne Frank, a German Jewish teenager who died in the Bergen Belsen concentration camp in Germany, which they had displayed wearing the jersey of the AS Rome.