HNS President Comments on Fan Safety Meeting in Croatia: "Fans Supported, Hooligans Condemned"

May 28, 2022 - A fan safety meeting in Croatia was held between HNS, MUP, Hajduk, and Dinamo on Friday after the clash between Torcida and the police last weekend. HNS president Marijan Kustić weighs in on the progress made. 

The recent riots on the A1 motorway near the Desinec rest area resulted in dozens of injured fans and police officers, while four fans suffered gunshot wounds. More than 40 people are currently in pre-trial detention. The Croatian Football Federation invited representatives of Hajuk, Dinamo, but also the Police Directorate to a meeting on Friday. 

The goal of the meeting was to find a way to avoid this scenario from happening again. The incident is considered the worst conflict between police and fans since Croatia's independence. RTL's Andrija Jarak spoke exclusively about the conclusions of the meeting with the head of the Football Federation, Marijan Kustić.

Kustić said that he was happy with the direction in which the conversation was going.

"We all agreed on some things unanimously that we have to do in the future. What is very important is that we agreed that we all have to respect the regulations that exist regarding the protocol, and that the Federation and the Police Directorate will sign an agreement where operational meetings will be held before high-risk matches before the protocol is respected and clubs definitely have an obligation to communicate with fans.

We will also send a letter to the fans or involve the fans in the meeting to express an opinion on some things that they think should be fixed. We must all do everything together to ensure the safety of the fans. It is in our interest to bring it to the highest level," said Kustić.

When asked if this means that the duty and obligations between the Federation, the police, and the organizers will be divided, Kustić answered in the affirmative.

"We all agreed on that. We all have to respect the regulations, they are the same for everyone, and the protocol is known. We will work on some things soon and I am definitely glad that we agreed on those things," he said.

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