Red Star Belgrade fans showed their support for slain Russian Darya Dugina
(Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images) © Getty Images
Fans of Serbian side Red Star Belgrade displayed their support for Darya Dugina, the journalist and daughter of political scientist Aleksandr Dugina, who was killed in a car bomb explosion in the outskirts of Moscow on August 20.
Just days after the killing of the 29-year-old Dugina in an incident in which is is suspected her father was also a target, fans of Red Star – the team also known as Crvena zvezda in their home country – unfurled the banner which read ‘Darya Dugina – eternal memory’.
The scene took place during Red Star’s emphatic 4-1 win against rivals Javor on Saturday in the Serbian SuperLiga.
⚫️ Сербские футбольные фанаты почтили память Дарьи Дугиной.Болельщики клуба «Црвена Звезда» во время матча развернули на трибунах плакат, на котором написали «Дарья Дугина — вечная память» pic.twitter.com/K6cOjaDLq8
— Лента.ру (@lentaruofficial) August 28, 2022
Footage posted on social media also shows the throngs of supporters singing the song ‘Katyusha’, a folk-based song and military march which gained popularity as an act of patriotism during World War II.
Dugina was killed after the car in which she was travelling exploded at around 9pm local time last Saturday while she was returning from the ‘Tradition’ festival.
It was reported that around 400 grams of TNT was placed into the vehicle by an assailant, and that her father opted against travelling in the same car at the very last moment.
Red Star Belgrade and the club’s fans have been prominent supporters of Russian issues in recent times; a stance which comes in direct opposition to those taken by numerous teams and sporting federation since the onset of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine which began in late February of this year.
It was announced this past summer that Red Star would take on Russian side Zenit Saint Petersburg in an exhibition match called ‘Clash of the Champions’ – an indication from the Serbian outfit that they did not subscribe to the list of sanctions placed on Russian football teams.
Clubs such as Zenit remain suspended from European competition, while the national team is barred from events until further notice.
Red Star Belgrade, meanwhile, also opted against discontinuing sponsorship links with energy giant Gazprom, even after clubs such as German team FC Schalke opted to discontinue their partnership in the wake of the Ukraine conflict.
