UEFA awarded Romania a 3-0 victory over rivals Kosovo left the field in protest against alleged discriminatory chanting by home fans during the Nations League match in Bucharest on Saturday.
But Romania has been ordered to play its next match behind closed doors due to the racist and/or discriminatory behavior of its fans in relation to xenophobic anti-Hungarian chants.
Kosovo’s players left the pitch at 0-0 with just seconds remaining, and the Kosovo Football Federation (FFK) later accused local fans of “offensive and provocative actions”, including chants of “Kosovo is Serbia.”
The Romanian Football Federation (FRF) stated that “there were no racist chants during the match.”
UEFA did not mention Serbia in its disciplinary decision, but fined Romania €128,000 (£106,000) for singing and other offences, including disrupting the national anthem and “transmitting provocative political messages not suitable for a sporting event”.
This is the third time the two teams have faced disciplinary action following their games in recent years.
UEFA fined the FRF €40,000 (£33,400) and ordered Romania to play their next home match behind closed doors after provocative chanting by a section of Romanian fans during the Euro 2024 qualifying match in September. of 2023.
FFK were fined 61,000 euros (£50,900) by UEFA last month for fan misconduct when the teams met in a Nations League match in September.
Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February 2008, after years of tense relations between its Serbian and mainly Albanian inhabitants.
After the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s, Kosovo sought independence and Serbia responded with a brutal repression against ethnic Albanians that ended in 1999 after a NATO bombing campaign against Serbia.
Kosovo’s independence is recognized by 100 countries, including the United Kingdom, but not by Romania and Serbia.
Kosovo and Serbia are always kept separate in UEFA and FIFA competitions.
