Warsaw: SiltaNews – News Desk
Poland’s presidential palace was lit up on Monday night with an eagle, a red-and-white flag and the slogan “Do boju Polsko!” (Let’s fight, Poland), as President Karol Nawrocki signalled support for fans ahead of Poland’s match against Malta. Posting on X, Paweł Szefernaker, head of the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland, said: “Today is the Malta-Poland match. “Meanwhile, a unique illumination was displayed on the Presidential Palace.”
The move was a response to Friday’s Poland–Netherlands match, when security at Warsaw’s National Stadium blocked supporters from displaying a tifo – a large-scale, coordinated visual display created by football fans – featuring the same design, prompting anger over what fans perceived as disproportionately strict stewarding.
Numerous banners were confiscated, supporters said searches were aggressive, and several attendees were denied entry or removed for minor breaches. Tensions escalated when ultras behind one goal threw flares onto the pitch, delaying the match, before staging a walkout in protest. Mateusz Pilecki, president of the We Are Poles supporters group which organizes choreographed displays, told online channel Kanal Sportowy: “Preparations had been underway for a long time, and on the day of the match, we learned that (…) we wouldn’t be able to bring the display”.
The Polish Football Association (PZPN) said it had had no prior knowledge of the supporters’ intention to enter with the banner, stating: “The large-format flag was not reported at any stage of preparation.” It further criticized the flare-throwing, saying: “The Polish Football Association firmly states that it does not accept any behavior that breaks the law at the stadium. “In particular, we do not consent to the lighting and throwing of flares.”
Polish fan frustration grew after Ukraine’s match against Iceland on Sunday at Warsaw’s Polish Army Stadium, where Ukrainian supporters were allowed to unveil a large tifo depicting a soldier with a machine gun and tanks, with the Kremlin burning in the background.