Photo via Al Jazeera

Arrests made for pro-Nazi chants at Hajduk Split-Ajax match in Croatia

Read the original at Al Jazeera ↗
Cite

The Associated Press. (2026, October 17). Arrests made for pro-Nazi chants at Hajduk Split-Ajax match in Croatia. Al Jazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/10/17/pro-nazi-arrests-made-for-chants-at-hajduk-split-ajax-in-uefa-europa-league?traffic_source=rss

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

Al Jazeera · collected 2026-10-17 · by The Associated Press

Quick Summary

In Split, Croatia, police arrested at least twelve Hajduk Split football fans who engaged in anti-Semitic chants and pro-Nazi behavior during a match against Ajax on Thursday night. The arrests came after thousands of supporters shouted insults against Jewish people and praised Adolf Hitler, leading to clashes with officers and a 12-minute disruption of the game when fans threw objects onto the pitch. This incident has drawn condemnation from Croatian President Zoran Milanovic and government officials who called for strong punishment and measures against glorifying Nazism in Croatia.
Written by AI on 2026-10-17, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Police in Split, Croatia, arrested at least 12 Hajduk Split soccer fans on Friday following pro-Nazi and anti-Semitic chants before a UEFA Conference League match against Ajax from Amsterdam on Thursday night. Thousands of Hajduk Split supporters chanted slogans like "Crush the Jews," "Rise up Adolf (Hitler)," and "Let's go Ustasha" as they marched through the city, carrying a mock coffin with Ajax’s name emblazoned on it, targeting the team known for its ties to Amsterdam’s Jewish community. During the match, fans set off flares, leading to more than a 10-minute stoppage and clashes with police before the game. The incident prompted widespread condemnation from Croatian leaders, including President Zoran Milanovic, who urged for measures against such behavior, which is seen as damaging to Croatia’s soccer image and values of mutual respect and tolerance.

Written for “Pro-Nazi Chants At Ajax Match Arrests” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Pro-Nazi Chants At Ajax Match Arrests
Sports · 4 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans strongly left and hedges 11% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Leans strongly left Hedges 0 of 16 claims Outlet record 60/100
Toronto Star
⚖️ Leans left further right than this Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 64/100
The Independent
⚖️ Leans left further right than this Hedges 2 of 14 claims Outlet record 59/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
18
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
11%
2 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans strongly left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
60/100
Al Jazeera's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
4
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-17 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Al Jazeera · 4594 article(s) · 2 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 2 correction(s)

Who wrote this

The Associated Press
1703 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Raynor was replaced in the second half of last Saturday’s 39-3 loss at Arizona, but coach Jimmy Rogers said this week he would remain as the starter.
🔮 Ahmad Hardy, Missouri’s All-American running back who missed the first seven games of the season after being wounded in the leg during a shooting at an outdoor concert in May, returned to action in the win.
🔮 Holden Gernier passed for 180 yards and a touchdown for Pitt, numbers that would have been better if not for mistakes by some of his teammates.
🔮 Marquis Willis had four receptions for 173 yards that included a 27-yard touchdown.
🔮 Two of Dallas’ wins on the homestand came against the Stars’ two previous coaches — Columbus’ Rick Bowness and Pete DeBoer of the New York Islanders. The teams will play their other inter-conference game next Thursday at Columbus. Up next Blue Jackets: Host Colorado on Tuesday. Stars: Visit Washington on Tuesday.
🔮 At times, he lowered his hands and beckoned Mbilli forward, inviting exchanges from positions where he could counter.
🔮 However, it took Frondell just 11 seconds to give Chicago the lead after Will Borgen was whistled for a delay-of-game penalty.
🔮 His leading receiver was Jackson Williams, who had 111 yards on 10 receptions.
🔮 Hardy, who ran for 1,649 yards and a school-record 16 touchdowns in 2025, was attending a concert in Laurel, Mississippi, in his home state, when he was shot in the leg as a bystander on May 10.
🔮 Hauser crossed the line in one hour, 39 minutes and 34 seconds, with fellow Paris Olympian Luke Willian second in 1:42:59 and John Reed third.
Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
Also by The Associated Press
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 1703 articles by The Associated Press →

Topics

Ajax Croatia Croatian Hajduk Split Split

Subjects

Croatia GPE · 6× Ajax ORG · 3× Split GPE · 3× Croatian NORP · 2× Croats NORP · 2× Hajduk ORG · 2× Hajduk Split ORG · 2× Jewish NORP · 2× Serbs NORP · 2× anti-Semitic NORP · 1×

Narrative

Recommended Stories list of 4 items- list 1 of 4Old rivalry has new twist as Man United head to Leeds – all to know - list 2 of 4FIFA set for rule change after Balogun red card row at the World Cup: reports - list 3 of 4Manchester Utd have ‘moved on’ from Martinez outburst, says Carrick - list 4 of 4Manchester City’s charges appeal to be heard by January, regulator says The outburst drew widespread condemnation in Croatia.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-17
🔮 Police said on Friday that they had arrested 12 fans on charges of inciting violence and hatred and indicated they may arrest more suspects.
2026-10-17 · Al Jazeera
Arrests made for pro-Nazi chants at Hajduk Split-Ajax match in Croatia · assertive framing

Claims (18 extracted, 2 hedged)

Police in the Croatian city of Split have arrested at least a dozen fans of the Hajduk Split football team, a day after unruly supporters held an anti-Semitic rally, clashed with officers and interrupted a match with the visiting Dutch team Ajax. asserted
supporters → arrest → team
The arrests were carried out on Friday after thousands of fans shouted insults against Jewish people and chanted in praise of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler before the game on Thursday night. asserted
thousands → carry → night
They marched behind a car on top of which was a mock-up of a coffin emblazoned with the name of the Ajax team, long been associated with Amsterdam’s Jewish community. asserted
up → march → community
Recommended Stories list of 4 items- list 1 of 4Old rivalry has new twist as Man United head to Leeds – all to know - list 2 of 4FIFA set for rule change after Balogun red card row at the World Cup: reports - list 3 of 4Manchester Utd have ‘moved on’ from Martinez outburst, says Carrick - list 4 of 4Manchester City’s charges appeal to be heard by January, regulator says The outburst drew widespread condemnation in Croatia. asserted
outburst → have → Croatia
President Zoran Milanovic and the conservative government harshly criticised the fans and demanded punishment. asserted
Milanovic → criticise → punishment
Police said on Friday that they had arrested 12 fans on charges of inciting violence and hatred and indicated they may arrest more suspects. uncertain
they → say → suspects
The Hajduk fans also clashed with police and forced a 12-minute interruption of the match when they threw flares and other objects onto the pitch. asserted
they → clash → pitch
Hajduk eventually beat Ajax 2-1 in the third-tier UEFA Conference League in what was the home team’s first major European match for 16 years. asserted
what → beat → years
The Croatian Football Association said in a statement that the incident damaged the country’s football image. asserted
incident → say → image
It called the behaviour completely opposed to “the basic values of sports: mutual respect, tolerance and togetherness”. asserted
It → call → sports
Milanovic urged “measures and sanctions that will show that there is no place for glorification of Nazism in Croatia”. asserted
that → urge → Croatia
The Croatian government long has been accused of turning a blind eye to rising nationalist and far-right sentiments related to the country’s World War II regime that collaborated with the Nazis. asserted
that → accuse → Nazis
The government has denied this. asserted
government → deny → this
Milorad Pupovac, the political leader of ethnic Serbs in Croatia, who were the victims of the pro-Nazi regime in Croatia, said “it was just a question of time before we will reach this point that happened in Split.” asserted
that → say → Split
Tens of thousands of ethnic Serbs, Jews, Roma and antifascist Croats perished in World War II concentration camps in Croatia. asserted
thousands → perish → Croatia
Nationalist Croats have used a World War II pro-Nazi chant as a symbol of Croatia’s struggle for independence from the Serb-led former Yugoslavia. asserted
Croats → use → Yugoslavia
The Split incident also was condemned by the Israeli embassy in Zagreb, which said it was “deeply shocked” and urged a government response. asserted
it → condemn → response
The Hajduk Split team, which could face disciplinary action from UEFA over the game’s disruption, apologised for the fans’ behaviour but said it reflected only some of the club’s fans. “Despite all efforts, things happened that we are not proud of, but we are ready to take the consequences as a club,” the team said in a statement. uncertain
team → face → statement
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support