150,000 Euro Fine for Russian Football Team Due to Fan Riots

On Tuesday, June 15, UEFA announced that if fans of the Russian football team cause disorder and riots in the stadium environment again, the team will be expelled from the European Championship. According to Reuters, UEFA imposed a fine of 150,000 euros on the Russian Football Union due to the behavior of the team's fans in recent days. A group of Russian national football team fans attacked English fans in the Velodrome stadium in Marseille at the end of a match that ended in a 1-1 draw. Before the match, Russian fans also engaged in violent clashes with English fans in the city center of Marseille. In its statement, UEFA stated: "The Russian Football Union is accused of offenses such as disturbing public order, using fireworks in the stadium environment, and racist behavior by the team's fans, and the disciplinary committee of this body has suspended the Russian national football team in addition to the monetary fine." The statement added: "If similar incidents that disrupt order inside the stadiums occur again, the Russian national team will be expelled from the European Championship." Vitaly Mutko, the Russian Minister of Sports, who will host the 2018 World Cup, told reporters that Russia will not appeal UEFA's decision. He added: "This decision to penalize Russia was made in advance. The executive committee made this decision and today they just announced it. This punishment is disproportionately excessive, but we cannot do anything. The monetary fine is very heavy because the Russian Football Union is a non-profit entity. There is no point in appealing this decision. These incidents are not related to the Russian national football team, and our team has committed no offense." Reuters adds that prior to the match on Sunday, fans from Russia, England, and France had clashed in Marseille for three days, which was met with a strong response from riot police. French Prime Minister Michael Wallace stated on Tuesday that as a result of the violent clashes in the early days of the European Championship, several fans who came to France will be expelled from the country. A group of Russian fans was detained by police near the coastal city of Cannes. Although UEFA's ruling on Tuesday pertains to incidents inside the stadium during the match between Russia and England, the organization warned on the same day that "beyond the decisions of disciplinary bodies regarding incidents in stadium environments," if fans of these two teams continue violent behavior outside the stadiums, the teams from Russia and England may be expelled from this tournament. The Russian team will face Slovakia in their next match in Group B on Thursday at the Lille stadium, while England will face Wales at the Lens stadium. Wales leads the group with three points, followed by England and Russia with one point each, and Slovakia at the bottom with no points. This is the second time during the European Championship that the Russian Football Union has been penalized for the behavior of its fans. During the 2012 European Championship held in Poland and Ukraine, the Russian national team was suspended from six points in the 2016 qualifying matches due to attacks by its fans on stadium security personnel and carrying illegal banners.