French Ligue 1 heavyweights Paris Saint-Germain will be made to pay a penalty for the incomprehensible behaviour of a small minority of their supporters during last season’s Champions League run.
A decision has been made by UEFA regarding punishment over the disgusting acts of violence aimed towards disabled Chelsea fans during the first leg of the quarter final clash between the two sides in April.
Travelling Blues supporters in the disabled section had suffered abuse in the form of coins, bottles and chewing gum thrown at them, and many of the victims also claim they had been spat at and verbally taunted by a number of the home supporters.
PSG will forfeit a percentage of their ticket sales during next season’s Champions League campaign, with UEFA having informed the French club that two sections of the Parc des Princes will be closed for their opening home fixture of the tournament.
A statement from UEFA said: “The UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body has ordered the closure of sectors 104 and 105 of Paris Saint-Germain’s stadium, the Parc des Princes, for the next UEFA competition match which Paris Saint-Germain would play as the host club.
“The sanction has been imposed for the discriminatory conduct of some Paris Saint-Germain supporters towards disabled fans of Chelsea FC at last season’s UEFA Champions League quarter-final first-leg match between the two clubs in Paris on 2 April 2014.”
This punishment by UEFA serves as a message to football supporters – not just PSG but all who attend games – that this type of despicable behaviour towards opposition fans will not be tolerated.
It also serves as a warning to football clubs that unless they get the unruly behaviour of trouble-making fans under control, they will have to take responsibility for those individuals and pay the price for their misdemeanors.