Spain will have to play their next international friendly with part of the stadium shut, after Fifa punished the Spanish federation for discriminatory chanting by home supporters during a friendly against Egypt. The sanction, announced with Fifa's written reasons, also comes with a fine of $20,000 (about £15,000).
What happened in Barcelona
The game was played on 31 March at the RCDE Stadium in Barcelona and finished 0-0. Around the tenth minute of the first half a group of Spain fans was heard singing a chant about Muslims, and it started up again at the beginning of the second half. An anti-discrimination message was put up on the screen inside the ground, then repeated early in the second half, and it was met with whistles from some sections of the crowd.
Fifa opened disciplinary proceedings against the Spanish Football Association (RFEF) for what it called Islamophobic and xenophobic chants. The RFEF condemned the singing straight away, and Spain coach Luis de la Fuente called it intolerable, adding that violent people use football to carve out a space for themselves.
The punishment in detail
Fifa's decision says the stadium closure must be applied mainly to the stands behind the goals. It covers Spain's next international friendly. There is a catch that matters for scheduling: if Spain qualify for the finals of the Nations League, the closure would be pushed back to one of the empty dates during qualifying for Euro 2028 next autumn.
In the written reasons Fifa published, the RFEF had argued its case in the disciplinary process, but the governing body went ahead with the partial closure and the fine regardless.
Egypt's reaction
After the goalless draw, the Egyptian Football Association condemned the chants as a repugnant act of racism. It also stressed that the behaviour of a small group of fans would not damage the close relationship between the Spanish and Egyptian federations. That tone, firm but measured, was probably the right one: the vast majority of the crowd was not involved, and some of those present were heard whistling against the chant.
For the RFEF the message is blunt. Showing an anti-discrimination notice on the big screen did not change the outcome, and the cost now is an emptier end of the ground for a game when the team would normally want a full house behind them.
Match facts: Spain 0-0 Egypt, international friendly, RCDE Stadium, Barcelona, 31 March. Fifa sanction: partial stadium closure (stands behind the goals) at Spain's next friendly, plus a $20,000 fine.
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