Finsterwalde, 11 July 2026
A friendly between second-division newcomers FC Energie Cottbus and Regionalliga side Hallescher FC was abandoned in Finsterwalde on Saturday in the 102nd minute following racist abuse from the HFC block directed at Energie professional King Manu.
The match, played in a format of two halves of 60 minutes each, ended prematurely with the score at 2:0 for Energie Cottbus. According to the organizers, the decision to abandon the game was made on security grounds after a foul in the 101st minute was followed by a scuffle between the two teams. Shortly afterwards, the racist attacks against an Energie Cottbus player occurred.
Background: The incident in the 102nd minute
As Hallescher FC announced on its Facebook page, the monkey chants and verbal attacks were directed at an Energie Cottbus player. The joint statement from both clubs reads verbatim: „Das heutige Testspiel zwischen dem FC Energie Cottbus und dem halleschen FC wurde aufgrund eines rassistischen Vorfalls gegen einen Spieler von Energie Cottbus abgebrochen. Für Rassismus und Diskriminierung gibt es in beiden Vereinen keinen Platz, weder auf dem Spielfeld noch auf den Rängen!"
According to consistent reports, the affected player was King Manu, who loudly defended himself against the abuse. Police, who intervened immediately after the incident, identified two Hallescher FC supporters as alleged perpetrators and ejected them from the stadium. Players from Cottbus had already spotted the two men in the crowd beforehand.