RED Star FC 93 fans unveiled a tifo of Ratko Mladic before the club's derby win over FK Partizan on Sunday night, and the reaction was immediate. The image was inflammatory on its own, but it did not land in a vacuum. Red Star had already been fined 90,000 euros (£77,000) by UEFA this season over another Mladic banner, so this quickly became a broader story about repetition as much as outrage.

Mladic died in a United Nations prison in August. He had been given a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in 2017.

The derby image at the centre of it

The central fact is straightforward: Red Star supporters displayed a tifo of Mladic before the derby. In a fixture that usually dominates Serbian football coverage on its own, that image became the issue that travelled far beyond the match itself.

That was always likely once the subject of the display was clear. Mladic is one of the most notorious figures from the Bosnian war, and any public tribute to him was bound to bring condemnation. The timing added another layer, coming just weeks after his death in August.

BBC Sport reported: "Red Star's social media accounts published video of the tifo and the two teams observing a minute's silence for Mladic, alongside a saluting emoji."

That online amplification widened the fallout. This was no longer limited to what supporters did inside the stadium; it became something attached directly to the club's public channels.

The earlier UEFA fine changes the context

The previous sanction is why this has been treated as more than one ugly moment. Red Star were already fined 90,000 euros (£77,000) by UEFA this season after fans unveiled a banner commemorating Mladic in a Europa League play-off against FC Viktoria Plzen last month.

That does not mean a fresh punishment is guaranteed, and there is no verified sanction attached to the latest display yet. But it does make the backlash harder for the club to shrug off. When a similar incident has already drawn a major UEFA fine in the same season, the latest one stops looking accidental.

The football itself has almost slipped into the background. Red Star's last five listed results were mixed, with two wins, one draw and two defeats, while Partizan had won four of their last five listed games before this derby. In another week, that contrast might have shaped the conversation around the result. Here, it barely registers.

The backlash has already spread beyond Serbia

One of the clearest signs of how quickly this escalated came online after the club's own posts. According to the BBC report, "The official Twitter account of Bosnia-Herzegovina's national team replied with an obscenity."

That response was crude, but it captured the level of anger the images produced. Once national-team accounts are reacting publicly, the story is no longer confined to club rivalry or domestic politics.

Red Star are now back under scrutiny because the latest display follows a 90,000 euro UEFA fine for a similar Mladic banner only last month. The derby has been played and won, but the image most people will remember is the one raised before kick-off.

FAQ

Why has the Red Star Belgrade Ratko Mladic tifo caused such a strong reaction?

The display itself was inflammatory, but the reaction grew because it came after an earlier UEFA punishment. Red Star fans unveiled a tifo of Ratko Mladic before the derby win over Partizan, and Mladic had been given a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in 2017. He died in a United Nations prison in August.

Have Red Star already been punished by UEFA over a Ratko Mladic banner?

Yes. Red Star were fined 90,000 euros (£77,000) by UEFA this season after supporters unveiled a banner commemorating Mladic in a Europa League play-off against FC Viktoria Plzen last month. That earlier sanction is why the latest derby display has been treated as part of a pattern rather than a single flashpoint.

How did Red Star's social media response add to the backlash?

BBC Sport reported that Red Star's social media accounts published video of the tifo and the two teams observing a minute's silence for Mladic, alongside a saluting emoji. The same BBC report said the official Twitter account of Bosnia-Herzegovina's national team replied with an obscenity.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →