Football Association of Iceland Condemns Being Used In Far-Right Propaganda

Iceland’s national team received praise from a Danish neo-Nazi party, which they have subsequently rejected and condemned.

The far-right Danskernes Parti has been making news in Iceland these days, although not for their political activity. Rather, the party created a widely-circulated image comparing the French national football unfavourably to the Icelandic one, and encouraging people to share the image if they feel France’s team should play in the Africa Cup rather than the Euros.

The comparison did not go unnoticed by the Football Association of Iceland (KSÍ), who responded on their official page:

“In the midst of the joy and pride that prevails after the fantastic results of our national team at the Euros, it is awful to run into a misuse of the sort that the Danish nationalist party has employed,” the statement reads in part. “Forces for separation have no place in football, and football authorities have fought hard against racism in the sport. Their fight is nowhere near over, and KSÍ is taking part in that effort with all our might … KSÍ condemns the Danskernes Parti’s use of this image, and will see to it that this is stopped immediately. We furthermore encourage the public to let us know about any similar images on Facebook.”