Italy will prohibit the allocation of the shirt with the number 88 to footballers, as announced on Tuesday by the Minister of the Interior, Matteo Piantedosi, when signing a declaration of intent with measures against antisemitism in the stadiums, reports Efe. In the declaration made, the political and sports world commits itself “not to assign players the 88 shirt”, the number that neo-Nazis use as a motto because it is equivalent to the cry “Heil, Hitler”, since the “H” is the eighth letter of the alphabet.
The legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, world champion with Italy, came to wear the number 88 during part of his time as a Parma footballer, before the strong criticism unleashed forced him to change it. The goalkeeper, however, always rejected any relationship between the choice of his shirt number and Nazism.
Much closer is the precedent of Mateusz Praszelik, a Polish midfielder who signed in February 2022 for Hellas Verona and also chose number 88 for his shirt. The decision was enthusiastically welcomed by the ultra supporters of the Italian team, with strong ties to the extreme right.
The document was signed by Piantedosi, by the Minister of Sports and Youth, Andrea Abodi; by the national coordinator for the fight against antisemitism, Giuseppe Pecoraro, and by the president of the Italian Football Federation, Gabriele Gravina.
It is a text of “great symbolic value” which also includes concrete measures to “begin a virtuous path against discrimination in sport, starting from anti-Semitism”.
“There is a lot to do in the world of sport,” Piantedosi pointed out.
match interruption
Abodi maintained that “the contents included in this declaration of intent commit us, not only morally, but also for the leap in cultural quality that we want to make.”
It also “prohibits fans from wearing any symbol that may evoke Nazism and anti-Semitism”to “responsibility to club members for discriminatory language” and to “define how matches will be interrupted” in the event of discriminatory choruses.
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The intention is to stop the racist and anti-Semitic chants that are often heard in some matches, such as those chanted last March by the Lazio ultras at the Olímpico in Rome.
The president of the Italian Jewish Communities, Noemi Di Segni, appreciated the initiative for its “speed and concreteness” and because it will make Italy “an example at the international level.”