European soccer’s governing body has ordered the Hungarian Football Federation to play its next three home matches “behind closed doors” over recent homophobic and racist behavior by its fans.
On Friday afternoon, UEFA’s Control Ethics and Disciplinary Body announced in a statement that it had concluded investigations on allegations of “discriminatory behavior” by its supporters during three Euro 2020 group stage matches: against Portugal on June 15; France on June 19; and Germany on June 23.
During the opener against Portugal, fans displayed homophobic banners at Budapest’s Puskas Arena.
When they played France, four days later, a group of supporters marched to the ground carrying a banner telling players to stop protesting against racism by taking a knee.
Anti-LGBTQ banners were also seen during the game against Germany in Munich — which took place after UEFA announced that the Allianz Arena would not be allowed to be illuminated in rainbow colors in support of LGBTQ rights.
In a statement released a day before the game, UEFA claimed that the organization was “politically and religiously neutral.”
According to Friday’s decision, Hungary was also fined 100,000 euros ($118,000).
Additionally, for the next three games, the federation will be required to display a banner with the hashtag “EqualGame” and the UEFA logo.
The sanctions do not apply to 2022 World Cup qualifiers, which are organized by FIFA.
