Bulgaria And England Charged By UEFA After Racism During Match

Bulgaria have been charged by UEFA over the racism that marred their game with England on Monday night, with England also being charged but for booing the national anthem.

Twice in the first half the referee had to stop the game as fans booed, made monkey noises and did Nazi salutes all towards Tyrone Mings, Marcus Rashford and Raheem Sterling.

A statement from UEFA confirmed the charges, saying, "Disciplinary proceedings have been opened following the UEFA European Qualifiers match between Bulgaria and England (0-6), played on 14 October.

Charges against Bulgarian Football Union:

- Racist behaviour (chants, Nazi salutes) - Art. 14 of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations (DR)

- Throwing of objects - Art. 16 (2) (b) DR

- Disruption of national anthem - Art. 16 (2) (g) DR

- Replays on giant screen - Art. 42 of the UEFA Safety and Security Regulations

Charges against English Football Association:

- Disruption of national anthem - Art. 16 (2) DR

- Insufficient number of travelling stewards - Art. 24 (2) of the UEFA Safety and Security Regulations

The case will be dealt with by the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body with the date of the meeting yet to be confirmed."

Gareth Southgate in conversation with the referee after the game was stopped. Image: PA Images

The FA put out a statement in reaction to the news saying, "We acknowledge the charges but will not be commenting further as it is an ongoing process.''

In a statement earlier on Tuesday UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin said, "UEFA's sanctions are among the toughest in sport for clubs and associations whose supporters are racist at our matches. The minimum sanction is a partial closure of the stadium - a move which costs the hosts at least hundreds of thousands in lost revenue and attaches a stigma to their supporters.

"UEFA is the only football body to ban a player for ten matches for racist behaviour - the most severe punishment level in the game. Believe me, UEFA is committed to doing everything it can to eliminate this disease from football. We cannot afford to be content with this; we must always strive to strengthen our resolve."

Bulgaria were already being punished in the game for racism from their fans in a previous game. UEFA had given the hosts a reduced capacity at the Vasil Levski National Stadium, closing 5000 seats after incidents in their qualifying games back in June.

Fans will be waiting with interest to see what the two different punishments for England and Bulgaria are for the match.

Topics: Racism, Euro 2020, UEFA, International Football, England

Ryan Sidle

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