SAN FRANCISCO, June 12, (THEWILL) – European Football governing body, UEFA, on Sunday threatened to kick Russia and England out of the European Championship finals if their fans are involved in more violence.
The threat followed three days of violence in Marseille, culminating in pitched battles between Russian and English supporters before Saturday’s match between the countries which has been described as the worst violence at an international tournament since the 1998 World Cup.
With more high-risk matches to come, the UEFA Executive Committee made a public warning in a statement which expressed disgust for the clashes adding that an inquiry into the Marseille trouble will recommend punishment on Tuesday.
“We will not hesitate to impose additional sanctions on the Football Association (FA) and the Russian Football Union (RFU), including the potential disqualification of their respective teams from the tournament, should such violence occur again,” UEFA said.
World body FIFA also condemned what it called the “shameful scenes” between “idiotic troublemakers”.
Authorities in Marseille said three people remained in hospital in a serious state on Sunday following the clashes including an England supporter who had initially been fighting for his life after apparently being beaten on the head with an iron bar.
Authorities are now on red alert for Russia’s next game in Lille, northern France, on Wednesday against Slovakia while England’s next Group B game against Wales in nearby Lens on Thursday has also been classed as a high-risk game by the French authorities.
Story by David Oputah
