Why was Barcelona punished and what sanction did the Catalan club receive?
Barcelona have been punished by UEFA and will play without fans against Red Star in the Champions League. The Catalan club was punished for a Nazi banner displayed by fans at the Stade Louis II during their 2-1 defeat to Monaco in the opening match of the competition.
The flag bore the phrase “Flick Heil” (Hail Flick), an allusion to a well-known Nazi salute. In images posted on social media, the object appears amid Barcelona flags in the visitors’ section of the Monaco stadium.
In addition to playing without fans, the Spanish club must also pay a fine of 10 thousand euros (around R$ 60.7 thousand, at the current exchange rate) for the flag. Barcelona will face Crvena Zvezda, away from home, on November 6th, at 4 pm (Brasília time).
— The Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) has decided to order the application of the suspended disciplinary measure imposed by the UEFA Appeals Body in its decision of 17 April 2024 for the racist behaviour of its fans, namely to prohibit FC Barcelona from selling tickets to its away fans for the next match of the UEFA competition, in accordance with Article 26(3) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations — the entity justified.
What did Barcelona say about the punishment?
The Catalan club did not resist the UEFA sanctions. On the contrary, Barça committed to adopting “additional measures” to avoid incidents like this in its stadiums, whether as home or away teams
— The club informs that it will comply with this sanction. Barcelona rejects any type of advocacy of violence. Furthermore, given the behavior of organized fans and supporters, both at home and away, which are resulting in repeated sanctions, it is hereby informed that the club will reinforce the current measures and take any additional actions that are appropriate to prevent these events from happening again in the future, as well as to sanction those responsible. — said the statement, released this Friday (27).
Apology for Nazism in European football
This is not the first time that fans of European clubs have staged scenes of Nazi-style chanting in stadiums. Given this history, UEFA has been taking steps to punish clubs and fans for inappropriate practices in tournaments it organizes.
In 2019, England thrashed Bulgaria 6-0 in a Euro 2020 qualifier. In the stands, fans chanted racist and Nazi chants and the game was stopped twice. Raheem Sterling and Tyrone Mings, black players on the England national team, were the main targets.
— Believe me, UEFA is committed to doing everything we can to eliminate this disease from football — said Aleksander Čeferin, UEFA president.
In 2022, in the Champions League, Atlético de Madrid was punished for discriminatory demonstrations by fans. The incident took place at the Ettihad Stadium, in the first leg of the quarter-finals of the competition, against Manchester City. In the same edition, Frankfurt, from Germany, was judged for the same reason.
The Spanish club was punished with a reduction of 5,000 seats in the return game, in addition to displaying a “no to racism” banner.
Barcelona’s Champions League 2024/25 fixtures
01/10 – 4pm – Barcelona (Spain) x Young Boys (Switzerland)
23/10 – 4pm – Barcelona (Spain) x Bayern Munich (Germany)
06/11 – 4pm – Red Star (Serbia) x Barcelona (Spain)
26/11 – 4pm – Barcelona (Spain) x Brest (France)
11/12 – 4pm – Borussia Dortmund (Germany) x Barcelona (Spain)
21/01 – 4pm – Benfica (Portugal) x Barcelona (Spain)
29/01 – 4pm – Barcelona (Spain) x Atalanta (Italy)
