The UEFA Champions League kicked off this week and already Polish club, Legia Warsaw has landed itself in hot water with the UEFA disciplinary body. The Polish club played Borussia Dortmund and were comprehensively beaten 6-0 by the German club.
The Polish club which was returning to the elite competition after a gap of 20 years is now set to be investigated for the following charges as per the UEFA website:-
#1 Crowd disturbances
#2 Setting off of fireworks
#3 Throwing of objects
#4 Insufficient organization
#5 Racist behaviour
#6 Stairways blocked
Charges 1-5 deal with disciplinary regulations under Article 16 of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations, while the charge of blocked stairways has been considered a violation of Art. 38 of UEFA Safety & Security Regulations.
Reports have now revealed that there was fighting in the stands between the two set of supporters, with security personnel having been hit with flares and sprayed with pepper spray by Legia Ultras as reported by the English edition of Spanish daily AS. UEFA has charged the German club as well for throwing of objects and setting off fireworks.
This has now led to the possibility of the Real Madrid game scheduled for 3rd November to be played behind closed doors. It is believed that Legia Ultras were responsible for offensive chants which led to the outbreak of skirmishes among the supporters.
Anti-discrimination organisation FARE’s observers said that they witnessed anti-Semitism at the match and reported it to UEFA as was reported by ESPNFC.
The Polish side have been sanctioned earlier as well in the year 2014 for racism and were instructed to play two matches behind closed doors. UEFA has looked to clamp down on racism and the current incident being a second offence by the club may be punished with a “one match behind closed doors and a fine of €50,000.”
The next game for Legia in the Champions League is against Real Madrid, and there is a real possibility of the game happening behind closed doors. A date of 28 September has been set by the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body to come to a conclusion.
The UEFA has also initiated disciplinary proceedings against Celtic for an illicit banner which was present in their match against Barcelona FC.
In a recent decision, the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) had ordered the closure of the FC Rostov stadium’s east stand for the next UEFA competition match due to the racist charges which the club had incurred in their second leg play-off against Dutch side Ajax Amsterdam.
