Croatia’s Domogaj Vida could find himself banned for the Semi-Finals after a video in which he was seen chanting “Glory to Ukraine” was uploaded online.
Vida scored in Extra-time to put Croatia ahead and even though Fernandes equalized for Russia, Vida kept his cool, scoring his penalty kick while Fernandes faltered and failed to score.
After the game, Vida, in a video with Croatian scout Ognjen Vukojevic filmed themselves celebrating and Vida yells out “Glory to Ukraine”, which is the chant of the Ukrainian army and the nationalist cause that is opposed to Russian territorial claims on the country.
The video caused an outrage in Russia with many of them slamming the video.
FIFA has now opened up an investigation into the video and Vida could be in a lot of trouble
According to SunSport, FIFA sent in a statement saying; “FIFA is processing the different reports of the said match as well as potential evidence concerning the matter referred to.
“Please understand, until we have evaluated all information available, we cannot comment further.”
Going into the FIFA’s code as regards political slogans Section 54 states that: “Anyone who provokes the general public during a match will be suspended for two matches and sanctioned with a minimum fine of CHF 5,000 (£3,800).”
Vida has tried to mitigate the situation by stating that it is a joke and nothing should be read into it
He said: “This victory is for Croatia. No politics.
“It’s a joke. I’ve got friends there since I joined Dynamo Kyiv, I didn’t mean anything else.
“I don’t why Russian fans might not get it. I like Russian people. It was just a joke.”