Budapest Honvéd and Ferencváros have made a generous offer to FK Csíkszereda: the two clubs will jointly cover the fine imposed by the Romanian Football Federation after our most recent home league match, a sanction issued for the use of Hungarian symbols.

Budapest Honvéd and Ferencváros have made a generous offer to FK Csíkszereda: the two clubs will jointly cover the fine imposed by the Romanian Football Federation after our most recent home league match, a sanction issued for the use of Hungarian symbols.

Our partner club, Budapest Honvéd, announced the gesture of solidarity on its Facebook page through Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade and president of the football club.
“This morning we received the news that the Romanian Football Federation fined the football team from Miercurea Ciuc because the supporters waved Hungarian and Szekler flags at their most recent match. The Romanian federation classified this as a risk of xenophobia and racism. Clearly, this is unacceptable and outrageous; there is no place for such decisions in 21st-century Europe. Therefore, I immediately contacted my friend Gábor Kubatov, president of Ferencváros, and we decided that Fradi and Honvéd would jointly pay the fine imposed on the football team from Miercurea Ciuc. We will not allow the Romanian Football Federation to put the club in a difficult situation or potentially ruin it through such decisions. So together with Fradi, we are helping our friends from Miercurea Ciuc: Honvéd and Fradi will jointly pay the fine imposed on Csíkszereda,” the club president stated.

The decision was also published on the official website of Ferencvárosi TC.
“Due to the display of Szekler and Hungarian symbols, the Romanian Football Federation has imposed its largest fine to date on FK Csíkszereda. In the 22nd round of the Romanian championship, during the home match against FC Botoșani, the Szekler club was fined 25,312 lei (approximately 1.85 million forints) for the Szekler and Hungarian symbols displayed in the stadium. Ferencvárosi Torna Club considers this fine unacceptable and unlawful, and together with Budapest Honvéd FC will pay the full amount of the fine on behalf of FK Csíkszereda,” the statement reads.

“Together with Budapest Honvéd, FTC will assume the payment of the outrageous fine imposed by the Romanian Football Federation on FK Csíkszereda, simply because the supporters cheered with Szekler and Hungarian flags in the stands. Borders may separate countries, but not nations! We stand with you, our brothers beyond the borders!” wrote Gábor Kubatov, president of the green-and-white club, on Facebook.

Zoltán Szondy, president of FK Csíkszereda, said:
“We would like to thank them once again for the offer – which I have also personally conveyed to the presidents of the clubs who stood in solidarity with us – but we sincerely hope that our appeal will be accepted, and that I will be able to return this amount to the two club leaders, preferably on the occasion of one of Csíkszereda’s home matches.”