Manchester City midfielder Rodri and Spain team-mate Alvaro Morata have been handed one-match bans for chanting about Gibraltar during a Euro 2024 victory event.
Rodri, who was chosen as player of the tournament, took the microphone during a celebration event in Madrid on July 15 and sang “Gibraltar es Espanol” – Gibraltar is Spanish – leading to a complaint from the Gibraltar Football Association.
An ongoing political skirmish has seen Spain long call for the return of the British Overseas Territory, which has a population of around 35,000 and is under 10 square km in size. It has been under British rule since the 18th century, with local authorities consistently opposing switching sovereignty to Spain.
Rodri came off at half-time with the score goalless against England in the final on July 14, but his team triumphed 2-1 without him.
The Gibraltar FA described Rodri and Morata’s actions as “deeply offensive” and filed a complaint saying they “noted the extremely provocative and insulting nature of the celebrations around the Spanish Men’s national team winning Euro 2024 [...] football has no place for behaviour of this nature.”
European football governing body Uefa subsequently appointed an ethics and disciplinary inspector to evaluate what had happened at the event. Rodri and Morata were later charged under Article 11 of Uefa’s disciplinary code.
In a statement confirming the sanctions, Uefa’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body said the players must serve one-match bans for “failing to comply with the general principles of conduct, for violating the basic rules of decent conduct, for using sporting events for manifestations of a non-sporting nature and for bringing the sport of football, and Uefa in particular, into disrepute”.
Spain’s next match – which Rodri and Morata will now miss – is the opening fixture of the Nations League away to Serbia on September 5.
The Gibraltar FA said it was “pleased” Uefa had “acknowledged the severity of this incident” and acted accordingly.
“This decision sends a clear message that football must remain a platform for promoting peace, understanding, and fair play, free from divisive and offensive actions such as the chants,” the Gibraltar FA added.
Additional reporting by PA
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