FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during a press conference at the Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC) in Doha on November 19, 2022, ahead of the Qatar 2022 World Cup football tournament. - Infantino hit back at Western critics of Qatar's human rights record at his opening press conference of the World Cup on November 19, blasting their "hypocrisy". (Photo by FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP)
MILAN — Udinese, a Serie A club, has identified a fan who racially abused AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan and banned him for life, vowing to do the same for the other ”evil people” amid calls for tougher sanctions from authorities following another weekend of fan misbehavior at Italian soccer games.
Maignan, who is Black, went off the field during Saturday’s Serie A encounter at Udinese after hearing what he subsequently described as monkey noises. The 28-year-old goalie was joined by his colleagues, and the match was delayed for almost five minutes before they rejoined, with Milan winning 3-2.
“In a joint effort with the local police authorities and utilizing the Bluenergy Stadium security cameras, Udinese Calcio has identified the first individual responsible for discriminatory behavior against AC Milan player Mike Maignan,” Udinese said in a statement on Monday.
“This individual will be barred from attending any Udinese Calcio matches for the rest of his or her life. This ban is effective immediately. We believe that such stringent measures are required to send a clear message that racism has no place in football or society.
The Italian sporting judge’s verdict on Udinese’s punishment is due on Tuesday. Earlier this month, Lazio was punished with a one-game partial stadium shutdown for racist chanting directed at Romelu Lukaku.
Authorities can also issue Daspo orders, which restrict people from stadiums for up to five years.
”We are working to find those guilty; there can only be two or three persons. There were no chants because they were not noticed by either the referee or the prosecutor’s office. “There were one, two, three evil people, and this is enough to make it a very serious thing,” Udinese general manager Franco Collavino said earlier on Monday, before identifying the first supporter.
“We have already started looking at the images from the stadium cameras, but we also need to listen to the audio.” A Daspo has a limited length, but the club may choose to prohibit a supporter from a stadium for an extended period of time. We will work to permanently ban them from the stadium.
Following the abuse, Maignan received tremendous support from the soccer community, and on Sunday he published a statement asking on authorities to take greater action.
Umberto Calcagno, the head of the Italian players’ association, supported his stance.
Umberto Calcagno, the head of the Italian players’ association, supported his stance.
”Fighting this sort of ignorance is extremely tough, but it is now achievable thanks to the federation’s rules, as demonstrated on Saturday,” Calcagno stated. “There was excellent collaboration between Mike Maignan, the referee, and the players.
However, the rules allow public authorities to postpone the match permanently. Today, it is necessary to punish such actions more severely.
There is already a three-step mechanism in place that allows a match to be called off twice before being abandoned, but FIFA President Gianni Infantino said over the weekend that any club whose fans racially insult players should instantly forfeit the game.
”If the president of FIFA believes this proposal can be translated into a rule, he may do so, we will adhere to the guiding principles FIFA provides,” Italian soccer federation president Gabriele Gravina said. “Stopping a match sends a strong message, but abandoning a soccer match with thousands of fans inside the stadium is a public order issue; it is not up to us, and we do not want to replace those who have the task, duty, and right to manage public order.”
For years, there have been countless racist events in Italian and European soccer, including situations involving Kevin-Prince Boateng, Mario Balotelli, and Lukaku, among others.
Calcagno claims that half of the abuse soccer players face is racist, but Saturday’s incident at Udinese was not the only important event in Serie A over the weekend.
A potentially explosive situation in Salerno was converted into a more amusing one as Salernitana fans tossed objects at Genoa players as they celebrated Mateo Retegui’s equalizer.
Retegui prompted worry when he collapsed after being struck by an object. However, it turned out to be a chocolate nibble, to which teammate Kevin Strootman replied by taking it up, eating it, and mockingly thanking the audience. Genoa went on to win 2-1.
“We celebrated in front of their fans; they threw a few things, but that’s what happens in soccer; no one was hurt, so that’s fine,” Strootman added.
More worryingly, a lump of cement was thrown from the stands. It did not hit anyone but was delivered to the referee, and Salernitana may face penalties on Tuesday.
