Raising awarenessThe FARE Action Week is co-ordinated by the FARE network in co-operation with UEFA. Activities had been designed to raise awareness of the issues and underline football's determination to tackle them. Initiatives were led by - among others - campaigning NGOs, fan groups, clubs, national associations, ethnic minorities, youth groups and schools.
EURO activitiesUEFA EURO 2008™ qualifiers put the spotlight on the problem at the start of the Action Week on 17 October. At the match between Bosnia-Herzegovina and Norway, players presented a banner saying 'No to racism, stop nationalism'. In Malta, children wore T-shirts with an anti-racist message and players from both Malta and Moldova showed a red card to racism in their pre-match lineup. The captains in the Republic of Ireland-Cyprus game wore 'Unite Against Racism' armbands, and children brought a huge anti-racist banner on to the pitch. Similar activities took place in Kiev, where a banner with an anti-racism slogan was displayed in front of the players of Ukraine and the Faroe Islands. These were just a few of the activities that took place.
Leagues and clubs in the mixEurope's leading leagues have also been making a stand against racism. The regular participation of all professional clubs in England and Scotland has to be mentioned, and the German Bundesliga expanded its engagement over two weekends, so that all sides in the top two divisions had the chance to take part in the anti-racist effort at a home fixture. The domestic leagues were also active in, for example, Austria, the Republic of Ireland, F.Y.R. Macedonia, Portugal, Serbia and Slovenia. For the first time, Israel joined in the Action Week, alongside Greece, Sweden and Switzerland as much-valued newcomers.
Fans' role
Fans from all over Europe have played an active role within the FARE Action Week. Anti-racist activities were organised by supporters' clubs at league matches in: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, England, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Scotland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and Ukraine.