Merlin in Kraljevo: Veterans Seek a Nationwide Ban

The War Veterans Association of Kraljevo has asked that a concert by Dino Merlin be held neither in that city nor anywhere else in Serbia. The show is scheduled for September 5, 2026, at the Sports Airport in Kraljevo, tickets are already on sale, and the association’s position was made public by its president, Vojislav Vukasinovic.

That request pushes the dispute beyond a single city. Earlier arguments over Merlin’s shows in Serbia focused on one venue and one date. This time the demand is that the singer not perform anywhere in the country.

“Kraljevo is a freedom-loving city that took in a large number of Serbs fleeing the wars of the 1990s from across the former Yugoslavia. We believe Dino Merlin’s concert should not be held in Kraljevo, or anywhere else in Serbia.”

The association points to the singer’s past statements and to the fact that Kraljevo took in a large number of displaced Serbs during the 1990s. It also asked the organizers whether they thought about war victims and about the people who found shelter in the city after being driven from their homes, when they decided to book the concert there.

Vukasinovic drew a clear line between the performer and the fans who would attend.

“We have nothing against the people who go to his concerts. Our objection concerns him, his past statements, performances and views.”

The association has called on other veterans’ groups, patriotic organizations and ordinary citizens to back its demand.

Can a Petition Actually Cancel the Concert?

No, it cannot. A petition titled “Ban Dino Merlin’s Kraljevo Concert” has gone up on the site Peticije.online, and anyone with internet access can sign it, but it carries no legal weight and is not a decision by any state institution. The petition and the association’s statement are two separate things that happened to land on the same day, which is why the public has treated them as a single move.

This is not the first time Merlin’s Serbian shows have stirred controversy. Similar petitions have circulated in past years, and the singer kept filling the country’s biggest venues throughout the same period. The two facts have sat side by side for close to two decades, and no petition has yet stopped one of his concerts here.

Tickets Sold Out Fast While the Dispute Played Out

Ticket sales for the Kraljevo show revealed just how much demand there is. On the first day, more than 158,000 people tried to buy a ticket at the same time, and the seller’s website went down under the load. The organizer has said part of the ticket revenue will go to charity.

What Happened at Kosevo

The dispute in Kraljevo followed chaos in Sarajevo. Merlin played three concerts at Kosevo Stadium, and on the first night part of the crowd holding valid tickets could not get in. Fans outside the gates chanted “Dino, thief,” accused organizers of selling more tickets than the stadium could hold, and some of those left outside said they would sue. The singer addressed the incident afterward.

The timeline of the past few weeks reads like this:

• three concerts at Sarajevo’s Kosevo Stadium and a collapse at the entrances on opening night
• the Kraljevo date announced for September 5 at the Sports Airport
• the first day of ticket sales and the site crashing under 158,000 buyers
• a petition launched on Peticije.online
• a statement from the War Veterans Association of Kraljevo, calling on other groups to join in

Kraljevo now heads into September with two open questions hanging over the same concert. One is logistical: whether the entry chaos seen at Kosevo could repeat itself on an airport tarmac, where there is no stadium gate to control the crowd. The other is political, and it has now been formally raised, since the association’s demand requires a response from both the organizer and the city.

For now, the concert remains scheduled for September 5 at the Sports Airport in Kraljevo.