A photo taken on December 22, 2019 shows a detail of a bronze statue of iconic footballer Zlatan Ibrahimovic after it was vandalized and his nose cut off in Malmo, Sweden. (Photo by Johan NILSSON / TT NEWS AGENCY / AFP) / Sweden OUTSIDE
Angry Swedish football fans are auctioning off a saw-tooth replica of a statue of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to protest the commercialization of the sport and what they see as the star’s betrayal.
Bid on the eBay website reached $610 (568 euros) on Tuesday.
The large bronze statue of the Swedish superstar, erected in his hometown of Malmo in 2019, has been the target of numerous attacks since his investment in football club Hammarby based based in Stockholm in November 2019, prompting supporters of Malmo FF, the club where he began to resent his profession.
The statue’s nose was sawed off in December 2019, with the statue’s legs the following month, causing it to collapse in front of a protective fence.
Malmo FF fans say they have placed three copies of the original nose – which is still missing – for auction “because choosing money over love can cost you dearly”.
Ibrahimovic “chosen money over love of his hometown and the club where he started his career”, they wrote on the specially created website www.vararnasan.se, Swedish for “where is the nose”.
They wrote: “Football was originally a mass movement, but it has increasingly become a hyper-commercialized mass industry, where the fans are seen as consumers, and the players and clubs. sets are treated like commodities,” they wrote.
The sellers said they plan to use the profits from the auction for efforts to combat “modern and commercial football and promote a sport centered on a love of clubs.” and games”.
The artist who made the bronze sculpture, Peter Linde, was upset about the auction.
“The sellers complain that football is turning the game into big business, but they themselves are monetizing a crime,” he tells Sydsvenskan daily.
BUT RELATED STORY
Get the hottest sports news straight to your inbox
Continue reading
Registration INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer and more than 70 other titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to news, download as early as 4am and share media articles society. Call 896 6000.
For feedback, complaints or enquiries, Contact us.
