Interior Ministry official and top Zaev loyalist Saso Tasevski met with the ex Macedonian football coach Igor Angelovski to give him a certificate of gratitude for the team’s run at the European Championship. Tasevski altered the name of the Football Federation of Macedonia in the document, declaring it the “Football Federation of the Republic of North Macedonia”.

The name of the association caused a political dispute with Greece, which demanded that FFM promptly changes its name and adds “North” in it, while the team was preparing for its first match. Initially Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani said that FFM is not obliged to comply, since it does not receive public funds. But after Greece then called Zoran Zaev out directly, over a tweet in which he used the term “Macedonian football team”, he is now doubling down in his campaign against the Football Federation of Macedonia.

Greece tells Zaev that he has no right to use the adjective “Macedonian”, warns him that he is in violation of the Prespa Treaty