Stars Ban Fans After Incident at Game

This season, the Dallas Stars announced an indefinite ban for fans at the American Airlines Center following disturbing images that emerged, depicting what looked like Nazi salutes during games.

The ban came after an internal investigation was launched when a group of fans appeared to make offensive gestures in December. However, the video that captured this behavior recently gained traction on social media.

The organization managed to identify the individual who purchased the ticket, though they haven’t disclosed his name or those of the other fans involved.

“Now that we have identified and spoken to the individual who purchased the ticket, we are banning that individual from American Airlines Center indefinitely,” a Stars spokesperson stated.

Furthermore, they emphasized that staff training is going to be enhanced. This is aimed at improving recognition and response to such incidents, with increased efforts to communicate the fan code of conduct and how violations can be reported. “Discriminatory or hateful behavior of any kind will not be tolerated,” they asserted, noting the importance of creating a safe and respectful environment.

The video, initially shared on Reddit, features several male fans in the upper section of the arena during a December 21 matchup against the Maple Leafs. It appeared as if they were giving Nazi salutes synchronized to the team’s goal song, “Puck Off” by Pantera.

An arena spokesperson reiterated last week that they “zero-tolerate any acts of hatred or discrimination.”

Both the American Airlines Center and the NHL have established fan codes of conduct that were breached by such gestures. However, the NHL has yet to clarify whether penalties for fans who perform hateful salutes will apply across all league games.