SHOCKING: Frankfurt fans making racist gestures before UCL match
Some of the German fans were seen doing racist gestures before the clash with Olympique Marseille
Fixtures in European competitions are usually a cause of celebration, as teams and groups of fans of different places and cultures come together to compete and prove who's best. However, some times that can lead to controversial incidents and this seems to be the case with the clash between Olympique Marseille and Eintracht Frankfurt in the second matchday of the group D in the UEFA Champions League.
The French team will host the Germans in the very culturally diverse French city, that's home to a myriad of immigrants from several parts of the world. Some individuals took issue with this, as several Eintracht Frankfurt supporters gave Nazi salutes as they entered the OM's Stade Vélodrome, as reported by French newspaper L'Equipe.
As of now, the incident has been reported with the local police, who in turn have informed UEFA of the situation. Identification of those doing the gestures is reportedly ongoing.
The sentence for performing such gestures, which constitutes a hate crime, is often a life-time ban from attending footballing events, such as it was imposed on a Lyon fan who did the same thing during the French side's clash with Manchester City back in 2018.
There were also six arrests take place before the game, with three OM supporters arrested for throwing projectiles while three German supporters were arrested for possession of smoke bombs during the pat-downs, said the French police.
The match, which was classified as a maximum risk clash by policing organizations, is expected to go ahead. It will be key clash for both clubs, with Olympique Marseille losing to Tottenham 2-0 in their opening match, while Eintracht Frankfurt did so against Sporting Lisbon, losing 3-0 at home.