August 6 – German third tier side Chemnitzer have sacked their captain Daniel Frahn (pictured) for “openly displaying sympathy” for a neo-Nazi hooligan group.
After missing Chemnitzer’s 3-1 away defeat by Hallescher on Saturday because of injury, the striker watched the game from the stands but was spotted standing with leading figures from far-right hooligan groups.
The former RB Leipzig forward had already been fined by the club in March this year for holding up a black T-shirt bearing the slogan ‘Support your local hools’.
At the time, he apologised by saying he had acted in solidarity with the relatives of the founder of far-right group HooNaRa (‘Hooligans, Nazis, Racists’) and that the T-shirts had been sold to help pay for medical care.
But after seeing Frahn with the group at the weekend, Chemnitzer released a statement describing his apology as a “farce”.
“He could not and would not live up to the responsibility of the player and team captain of a football club, which involves more than scoring goals and letting yourself be cheered by the crowd: namely, attitude,” said Romy Polster, deputy chair of Chemnitzer FC’s shareholder meeting.
The club itself are in deep trouble facing bankruptcy due to crippling debts but have become widely synonymous with far-right sympathisers.
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