Goalkeeper punching a representative of the opposing team. Stones flying from the stands to the players. A fight between club activists and a knife stuck between the ribs of the boss of a rival team. In the background, fans chanting "Get out of here, lousy Jews!" All of this happened in the Second Polish Republic, shortly before the outbreak of World War II.
Six years ago, the incidents in Wisła's Derby match with Cracovia were exceptionally high-profile. During the game, fans of the first team shouted to the stove! and after it was over they chanted Always over you, fucking ... Jews! , to the applause of their players "thanking you for cheering".
Prosecutor then discontinued the investigation initiated in this matter, and in the justification of this decision, referred, inter alia, to the pre-war rivalry of both clubs , claiming that the purpose of the cited chant was to humiliate the Cracovia team, which was called "Jews", which is justified in the tradition and history of the club.
Indeed, it can be said that of these two teams, Cracovia was considered a more liberal and open club before the war. Players of various nationalities, including Jews, played there both before World War I and in the Second Polish Republic.
This does not mean, however, that the problem of anti-Semitism was alien to Cracovia players and fans. Tomasz Michaldo, a historian from the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, sheds new light on this subject. In an article published in the Jewish History Quarterly, he not only proves that the stadium attacks on Jews have an exceptionally long history but also - as if to cheer you up - I show that used to be much worse . At least in Krakow.
Makkabi Kraków had many sections, incl. water polo (photo:NAC, reference number 1-S-2604-2, public domain).
Stones in "lousy Jews"
On June 12, 1937, at the Cracovia stadium, the team played a match with the Makkabi Kraków Jewish Sports Club. As reported in the press, the players of "Pasów" foul rivals extremely brutally and the Poles gathered in the stands shouted anti-Jewish cries such as "get out of here, lousy Jews" and "scabs to Palestine" .
But that was just the beginning. According to the press report, Jewish fans were attacked with sticks and stones , there was also a fight between two activists of both clubs. In the end, the Cracovia goalkeeper hit his fist another representative of Makkabi, and the Poles from the stands threw stones at the opposing team's players, forcing them to leave the field.
It was not the only similar case. Also in July 1936, Cracovia fans beat up Makkabi fans during a match. The victims were mostly teenagers, I know it happened during the meeting of the junior teams.
On the other hand, in June 1937, the Jewish "Głos Poranny" reported that in Zgierz the fans of the local club had beaten up the players of Bar Kochby Łódź, and the manager of this team had been stabbed.
The material is based on a scientific article published in the periodical "Jewish History Quarterly".
Cracovia for Poles!
The events of June 1937 may have been influenced by the text published in May by the Franciscan "Mały Dziennik". As Tomasz Michaldo explains:
The short article first stated that Wisła and Garbarnia are clubs with a "purely Polish element", while Cracovia is "the asylum of a whole galaxy of Jewish sportsmen , however, in recent months "sober-minded Poles are demanding a purge in the club.
The summary states that the Catholic population of Krakow "demands that it selects its members as soon as possible".
It should also be added that before the match discussed, Makkabi's players were to be warned of the danger from the fans, and the representative of Cracovia openly supported the anti-Jewish demonstrations.
The quoted historian also analyzes the situation in Krakow in the summer of 1937 and comes to the conclusion that the incidents at the stadium could have been one of the elements of the anti-Jewish action coordinated by the National Party and the All-Polish Youth. However, there is insufficient evidence for this.
The source of the above news is:
Tomasz Michaldo, "Scandalous anti-Jewish antics on the K.S. Cracovia ”, or on the rise of anti-Semitic sentiments in Kraków in mid-1937 , " Jewish History Quarterly ” , September 2014, No. 3 (251), pp. 583-596.
Historical news. What's the matter?
 | The "historical news" column is the latest news from the world of history. We are looking for missed and concealed discoveries of Polish (and not only) scientists. We show that there is always something going on in research on the past. |
 | Our news is short and accessible. On 2-3 thousand signs, we will summarize for you the discoveries that scientists have made on dozens of pages of hermetic works. We only write about what really matters. No boring. |
 | We rely on scientific publications from the last 18 months . In the world of history, news spreads slowly, and academic works reach potential recipients with a long delay. What in other fields ceases to be news after 24 hours in history may be even a year later. |
 | When preparing news, we follow the list of the most prestigious historical periodicals. If you are a publisher or author and would like us to reach for a specific publication - please send it to our editorial office. |