UEFA have just released a statement regarding yesterday’s trouble before and after the match between England and Russia.
It reads:
“The UEFA Executive Committee would like to express its disgust at the violent clashes which occurred in the city of Marseille.
Such unacceptable behaviour by so-called supporters of the national teams of England and Russia has no place in football, a sport we must protect and defend.
The UEFA Executive Committee has warned both football associations that – irrespective of any decisions taken by the independent disciplinary bodies relating to incidents inside the stadium – it will not hesitate to impose additional sanctions on the Football Association (FA) and the Russian Football Union (RFS), including the potential disqualification of their respective teams from the tournament, should such violence occur again.
We urge both the FA and the RFS to appeal to their supporters to behave in a responsible and respectful manner.
We would also like to publicly voice our support for the work of the French authorities and security forces for their efforts to deliver a safe and secure tournament in challenging circumstances.”
The notable point is that there is a threat of disqualification from the tournament for both Russia and England.
There had been trouble between England fans and the police since the traveling fans arrived, on three consecutive nights in the Old Port part of Marseilles. However, after the final whistle there was trouble inside the stadium when Russian fans let off flares and appeared to charge at the England as, in a section that included families.
The scale of the problem is deepened by the fact that French Police are already stretched dealing with the terror threat against the tournament.
An even more problematic consequence might be that Russia are due to host the 2018 World Cup and there seems to be little headway being made in the local authorities battle against hooliganism there.
