The president of FK Csíkszereda and the Székely Land Football Academy once again protests against what he describes as anti-Hungarian bias and the manifestation of double standards within the Romanian Professional Football League (LPF).

The president of FK Csíkszereda and the Székely Land Football Academy once again protests against what he describes as anti-Hungarian bias and the manifestation of double standards within the Romanian Professional Football League (LPF).

On Monday, Zoltán Szondy once again outlined his position during a press conference regarding the disciplinary committee and gendarmerie fines imposed in connection with the use of Hungarian and Székely national symbols at FK Csíkszereda’s home matches. Since the start of the 2025–2026 season, the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee operating under the Romanian Football Federation has sanctioned FK Csíkszereda on seven occasions as the organizing club for the use of the contested symbols, including one case related to the chanting of “Ria, ria Hungaria.” The total amount of fines imposed so far reaches nearly 104,000 RON, approximately 20,500 euros.

In addition, the “King Ferdinand I” Mobile Gendarmerie Unit of Târgu Mureș imposed, in a separate procedure, a 30,000 RON fine on FK Csíkszereda for displaying Hungarian and Székely flags inside the stadium following the home match against Universitatea Cluj. Furthermore, after the most recent home league match against UTA Arad, at least forty supporters were individually fined 140 RON each for chanting.

Shortly after the Round 26 fixture, the Disciplinary Committee imposed another fine of 37,968 RON. “This is now an open war, regarding which we have a few remarks. I would like to clarify what comes next. According to the current regulations, these sanctions accumulate, and the next step (…) is the 70,000 RON fine, which is the maximum possible for this so-called offense. The sanction that follows, however, is far more painful than any financial penalty, because after that sector closures and even stadium closure will follow,” warned Zoltán Szondy.

The president emphasized that an absurd situation has arisen: while physical or verbal aggression occurs round after round in various stadiums across Romania, FK Csíkszereda has become the most penalized club in the league despite the fact that none of its disciplinary fines were imposed for such incidents. In Miercurea Ciuc there have been no objects thrown onto the pitch, no fights, and no racist chants. “In practice, we are being fined regularly for one Hungarian flag and one Székely flag, the same two items that first appeared in our stands in the summer of 2018 and which, until we joined the top division and thereby the professional league, did not disturb anyone. These flags were present when Prime Minister Viktor Orbán visited, they were there when Răzvan Burleanu, president of the Romanian Football Federation, attended a match here, they have been displayed at every game, as they are brought and taken away by the Lokálpatrióták supporters’ group. Until the summer of 2025, no observer and no media outlet took issue with them,” Szondy explained.

According to the president, the head of the league, Gino Iorgulescu, demonstrated an anti-Hungarian attitude from their very first contact that would be inconceivable in civilized environments. However, the systemic nature of this bias is not necessarily proven by statements, but by the consistent application of double standards. While FK Csíkszereda receives repeated fines for the peaceful use of its identity symbols, no comparable sanctions are imposed in cases such as the Dinamo Bucharest vs. Universitatea Craiova match, where racist chanting occurred, clashes took place between players and supporters, objects were thrown at a referee of Hungarian ethnicity, and the two fan bases jointly voiced anti-Hungarian slogans. In contrast, FK Csíkszereda is regularly harassed for the peaceful display of identity symbols, despite the absence of violence, public disorder, or security consequences in the stadium. Meanwhile, the National Council for Combating Discrimination (CNCD) has for years failed to schedule a hearing in the case where our supporters were denied entry to the Steaua Bucharest stadium with banners in the Hungarian language explicitly on the grounds that they were written in Hungarian.

Zoltán Szondy stated that in every case where it was possible, the club has taken the necessary steps to appeal the disciplinary and gendarmerie fines. In two gendarmerie cases, the first hearing for one of them has already been scheduled for March, while in the other case no hearing date has yet been set. Regarding disciplinary fines, those under 20,000 RON – five out of the seven – were not subject to appeal and had to be paid. The two most recent fines, approximately 25,000 and 38,000 RON, can be appealed, but according to the president, since the appeals will be reviewed by the same committee that originally imposed the sanctions, it is unlikely that their interpretation will differ from previous decisions.

There is, however, one higher appellate body: the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland. In order to turn to CAS, the official reasoning of the Romanian decisions is required, yet these have not been communicated. In this race against time, there is concern that a stadium closure sanction could be imposed before the club’s complaint can be effectively remedied. “As I have said before: we do not wish to take the step of banning the Székely or Hungarian flag in our stadium, but neither do we wish to reach a point where we can no longer play in Miercurea Ciuc,” summarized the dilemma the president of FK Csíkszereda.

Szondy also pointed out that political representatives of the Hungarian community have taken action following the previous appeal. RMDSZ MP József Kulcsár-Terza submitted a parliamentary interpellation on the matter, and Deputy Prime Minister Barna Tánczos, according to the club president’s knowledge, held a “lengthy and sharp” discussion with FRF President Răzvan Burleanu. Attila Korodi, the mayor of Miercurea Ciuc, also addressed a letter to the league leadership, objecting to the significant sanctions imposed on the club. “The Székely flag is a cultural symbol of the local community, without extremist or inciting character. Its peaceful display cannot be disproportionately classified as a sanctionable act. In this context, we respectfully request that, in the spirit of proportionality, fairness, and respect for the identity of local communities, these decisions be reviewed,” the mayor stated.

The unprecedented fine imposed on FK Csíkszereda is yet another example of pressure being exerted on the Hungarian minority within the framework of sport, stated the Mikó Imre Legal Service in its communiqué. “The Hungarian and Székely symbols displayed in the stadium do not offend, incite, or provoke. Their punishment does not serve the maintenance of order but rather aims at pushing Hungarian presence out of public spaces, even where it is historically and socially natural. The amount of the fine is clearly disproportionate and creates a dangerous precedent: it sends the message that expressing national identity can be turned into a disciplinary offense. This is no longer sports regulation, but institutionalized discrimination. The case of FK Csíkszereda goes far beyond football. It is about whether we allow sport to become a tool of hatred and intimidation. We believe that identity is not a crime, the use of symbols is not provocation, and it cannot be silenced through punishment,” the organization’s statement reads.

FK Csíkszereda will officially communicate its position to the leadership of the league and the federation, requesting consistency and the abandonment of double standards, while emphasizing that the club is ready to cooperate with the Romanian Football Federation and the Professional Football League in order to establish a balanced sanctioning practice proportionate to the actual gravity of specific acts.

Rédai Attila