Wrote: Festim Rizanaj
On May 12, 2025, the Serbian tabloid Kurir published an article titled in sensationalist tones: "Albanians, because of Serbia, are selling the inhabitants of the so-called Kosovo! In Pristina, angry: This is shock, scandal and betrayal!".
The article claims that the Albanian Football Federation has deliberately excluded Kosovo citizens from the opportunity to purchase tickets for the 2026 World Cup qualifying match between Albania and Serbia to be played on June 7 in Tirana.
According to Kurir, this action has been interpreted in Pristina as a scandal and an act of betrayal towards Kosovo Albanians, claiming that Tirana is “sacrificing” Kosovo citizens to avoid tensions with Serbia. The article provides as a reference statements from fans to RTK, as well as the ticket distribution mechanism itself, as evidence of this deliberate exclusion.
What is being claimed?
On May 12, 2025, several Serbian media outlets, including Courier, News and Inform, published articles claiming that “Albanians betrayed the people of Kosovo for the sake of Serbia.” The articles report on a decision by the Albanian Football Federation, according to which citizens with Kosovo passports will not have the right to buy tickets for the June 7 match between Albania and Serbia in Tirana, as part of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. This measure, they say, has caused “anger, scandal and a sense of betrayal” among Albanian fans in Kosovo, referring to the fans’ statements to RTK.
The articles also mention an application that will be used to select fans who will be eligible to purchase tickets, with a maximum limit of four tickets per person.
This claim was spread by being published by the Albanian-language information portal lecanton.ch in Switzerland.
What is known so far?
Articles published by Serbian media claim that the reactions of fans from Kosovo, who have expressed anger and dissatisfaction through statements given to Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK), constitute their source. However, so far there has been no official confirmation or direct reporting from RTK confirming the exclusion of citizens with Kosovo passports from the possibility of purchasing tickets for the Albania–Serbia match scheduled for 7 June 2025. A review of available sources has not identified any news or statements from RTK on this issue.
However, according to public information, The Albanian Football Association (AFCA) has introduced a new ticket sales system. through an online application, which will be activated on May 15. This system foresees that any person can apply for tickets and then the selection of buyers will be done randomly (by lottery). The selected persons will have the right to purchase up to four tickets, which must be paid for within the period May 30 – June 2.
The application requires verification with an official identification document, but no clear or official announcement has been made that excludes citizens with a Kosovo passport from this procedure. However, due to the way personal data is controlled and the lack of transparent details by the AFF, suspicions of a tacit exclusion of a certain category remain present in the public and media discourse.
Analyze:
Serbian media claim that citizens with Kosovo passports have been excluded from purchasing tickets for the Albania-Serbia match, citing fan reactions to RTK, although there is no official confirmation from this medium.
Tickets will be sold through an online application with official identification, and the selection of buyers will be done randomly.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info qualifies this claim as "misinformation".
Reasoning:
"Disinformation" is defined as information content that contains a "mix" of inaccurate sources or even half-truthful attributes, and that is created and/or distributed with the deliberate intention of causing harm. The motive behind the producers/distributors of disinformation content lies in achieving a political, financial, psychological or social goal.