The cruel penalty to which Benfica was exposed

He Benfica will be severely punished by those UEFA after what happened last night in San Sebastián with the launch of flares in a section of fans of Real society. The penalty to which the San Sebastian club was also exposed for negligence in controlling the access of fans to the stadium. The UEFA regulations are clear. Article 16 of the Code is clear about the responsibility of clubs for any incident that occurs during a match.

According to him, “Host clubs and national associations are responsible for order and safety in and around the stadium before, during and after matches. All associations and clubs must comply with the obligations specified in the UEFA Safety Regulations. They are responsible for any kind of incidents and may be subject to disciplinary and directive measures, unless they can show that they were not negligent in the organization of the match.“.

But in it it is clarified that among the acts for which the clubs are responsible, is the inappropriate behavior of their followers. And within this behavior he reflects what happened in Prague: “The invasion of the field of play; the throwing of objects that may endanger the physical integrity of other people, the throwing of objects that may endanger the physical integrity of other people present at the match or affect the smooth progress of the match and the lighting of fireworks or anything else.either”.

Opening the file

The normal thing is that now or in the coming days is when UEFA will open a file and where the two clubs are exposed to sanctions. In the case of Benfica, it was exposed to various penalties from a financial fine, a ban on the sale of tickets to upcoming matches and, in particular, the partial and total closure of the stadium. In the case of the San Sebastian club due to possible failures in the access controls to the stadium, by not preventing the entry of flares.

Precedent at Atlético in 2015

In fact, there was already an almost identical precedent in 2015 with Atlético de Madrid. It was at the Vicente Calderón and there was also a flare thrown from the Portuguese supporters’ area to an area where there were supporters of the red-and-white team. That match was played on September 30, 2015. The Portuguese club was sanctioned a few weeks later with a fine of 20,000 euros, closing its stadium for the next match, which was then suspended for two years. In addition, Atlético de Madrid was fined 11,000 for negligence in access control and blocking the stairs. The anti-violence campaign also proposed very strict punishments against Portuguese fans who launched flares.