FIFA has opened an investigation over the racist chants that were heard during the Spain-Egypt friendly match last week, in which a large portion of the spectators at the RCDE Stadium in Cornellà, Barcelona, chanted "anyone who doesn't jump is a Muslim".
"FIFA has today initiated disciplinary proceedings against the Spanish Football Federation for the incidents that occurred in the friendly match against Egypt", they said in a statement. The chants were notified by the referee in his report, and through loudspeakers and screens at the stadium, the match organisers reminded that the "legislation for the prevention of violence in sport prohibits and punishes active participation in violent, xenophobic, homophobic or racist acts."
The potential sanctions against the RFEF range from a financial penalty to the obligation to display anti-racism messages in subsequent matches. It is not expected that this will lead to the closure of the stadium to the public for subsequent matches, according to AS.
One day after the incidents, Lamine Yamal, who is Muslim, said that the chants were "disrespectful and intolerable", and "using a religion as a taunt on the field makes you look ignorant and racist".
