Fifa rejects Spain’s appeal over racist chants during Egypt friendly

On October 17, the Fifa Appeal Committee dismissed Spain's appeal regarding punishment for racist chants displayed during a friendly match against Egypt in March. This decision was announced by the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF). In the match held at Cornella, the home of Espanyol, on March 31, a segment of the crowd chanted "whoever doesn’t jump is Muslim."

Following Spain's World Cup victory on August 4, the disciplinary committee had already handed down a fine of US$20,000 (17,800 euros) and ordered the closure of at least 15% of the stadium for Spain’s upcoming home friendly. The RFEF maintained that the misconduct was identified by their own monitoring mechanisms, and they urged the crowd to halt the chants at various intervals, including half-time, the second half, and the stadium's video screens.

They claimed full cooperation in identifying those responsible. Spain's forward, Lamine Yamal, who plays for Barcelona and was born near the Cornella stadium, is Muslim. At the time, he denounced the chants as "a lack of respect and something intolerable." Spain's manager, Luis de la Fuente, echoed similar sentiments, calling the chants "intolerable."

De la Fuente further stated that violent individuals exploit football to establish a space for themselves and must be removed from society. The Egyptian Football Association also issued a statement expressing its "total condemnation" of the "vile racist incident" perpetrated by certain spectators who exceeded the bounds of acceptable behavior.