BUCHAREST — On Saturday, Romania’s soccer federation voiced its strong dissatisfaction regarding what it labeled as “premeditated” actions by Kosovo’s national team during a Nations League match that was ultimately abandoned on Friday night.

The match, which was held in Bucharest, was suspended during stoppage time with the score standing at 0-0. Tensions escalated into physical altercations between players from both teams, leading to the Kosovo players leaving the field. Although UEFA has not provided a specific reason for the suspension, it has been reported that the Kosovo players were offended by pro-Serbian chants from the crowd.

In an official statement released on Saturday, the Romanian Football Federation expressed its disappointment towards the behavior displayed by the Kosovo delegation and their players during the match. “We strongly contest the accusations coming from the Kosovo side and firmly believe their actions were planned in advance,” the statement read.

Relations between Serbia and Kosovo have been fraught with tension since the violent conflicts in the Balkans during the 1990s. Following this period, Kosovo, predominantly inhabited by ethnic Albanians, declared its independence in 2008. However, Serbia has refused to acknowledge this independence and continues to regard Kosovo as an integral part of its territory.

The Romanian federation firmly dismissed claims of any offensive chanting from its supporters. In response to the situation, they stated, “We want to highlight that there were no instances of racist chants during the match, nor did anyone chant ‘Kosovo is Serbia’ even once.” Furthermore, the federation expressed regret over the Kosovo team’s decision to exit the pitch so close to the end of the match, particularly under circumstances unfavorable to them.