Protesters smear FIFA headquarters with paint

ZURICH (Reuters) - About 150 protesters gathered outside FIFA's headquarters in Zurich on Saturday with banners criticising the ruling body's management of the World Cup in Brazil, causing minor damage to the building.





FIFA's reputation has been tarnished by allegations of corruption and its running of the tournament which started on Thursday has also been criticised.

"Around 150 people have taken part in the unauthorised demonstration," Michael Wirz, spokesman for the Zurich police, told Reuters.

"The event was peaceful overall with nobody injured, but there was some minor damage to the building," he said.

Pictures published on the website of Swiss newspaper 20 Minuten showed masked protesters smearing the signpost outside the building with red paint and agitating banners of left-wing youth organisations.

Activist website Indymedia.ch had posted a call to protest under the slogan: "We love football, we hate FIFA".

The protests should be seen as a sign of solidarity with people in Brazil who had been driven from their homes to make space for stadiums, Indymedia.ch said.









(Reporting by Silke Koltrowitz, editing by Ed Osmond)


Share

1 min read

Published

Updated

Source: Reuters


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world