VI
EN
According to The Guardian, during the match between Albania and Italy on June 16th, Albanian fans mocked their Italian opponents by breaking spaghetti in half in front of them. Italy subsequently won against Albania 2-1. In Italian and French culinary culture, breaking spaghetti and baguettes in half is considered taboo. Therefore, this method is often used when someone wants to provoke people from these two countries.
This unique "culinary battle" continued during the match between Austria and France on June 18th. Austrian fans broke their baguettes (the iconic French bread) in half in front of French supporters.
This unique "culinary battle" continued during the match between Austria and France, much to the amusement of the other fans.
Breaking spaghetti or baguettes in half is considered taboo in Italian and French culinary culture. Therefore, this action is often used to provoke people from these two countries.
One of the first images to emerge at Euro 2024 was when a Swiss fan held up a cardboard sign that read "fondue tastes better than goulash" during the match against Hungary.
Fondue is a famous Swiss cheese fondue dish. Goulash, on the other hand, is a traditional Hungarian stew with meat and vegetables. This message was meant to provoke Hungarian fans and players. With just a piece of cardboard, a pen, and a short message, the image of the Swiss fan still managed to spread widely. And it almost sparked a culinary war at this year's Euro.
However, food-related jokes can sometimes be a bad omen. Albania lost to Italy 2-1 and Austria were defeated 0-1 by "Les Bleus".
Host nation Germany is also breathing a sigh of relief, as at least the culinary battles on the sidelines haven't caused serious consequences beyond broken cakes or packets of noodles.
Germany is expected to welcome over 600,000 international tourists this year and have 1.5 million overnight stays during Euro 2024.
Tourists flocking to Germany are entertaining themselves with a "food battle." Of course, this is just for fun, not a wasteful consumption of food. Even so, this battle is just as dramatic as any sporting event.
Besides mocking iconic street food, many fans also brought banners to the stadium.
