Uefa has announced it will appeal against the sanctions imposed following the controversial Serbia v England Under-21 playoff in October, including the punishment for racist abuse by Serbian supporters. The Serbian U21 side was ordered to play one match behind closed doors and fined £65,000 for the racist behaviour of their fans during the match in Krusevac on 16 October.
The sanctions, imposed by Uefa's disciplinary panel on 13 December, were widely criticised as too lenient. Uefa stated on its website: 'Uefa, via the Uefa disciplinary inspector appointed to the case, has decided to appeal all the sanctions.' The 2013 European Under-21 Championship playoff second leg was marred by racist chanting and scenes of violence.
England players Steven Caulker and Tom Ince received two-match and one-match bans respectively for their involvement in a brawl after England's late winner, sparked by racist abuse directed at Danny Rose. Uefa president Michel Platini had previously indicated he was likely to seek tougher sanctions against Serbia.
The Uefa disciplinary inspector has until 8 January to lodge the appeal, the same deadline for the Serbian and English FAs to appeal. Uefa also banned Serbian coaches Andreja Milunovic and Predrag Katic from all football for two years, with the final six months suspended. Players Goran Causic, Ognjen Mudrinski, Filip Malbasic, and Nikola Ninkovic received match bans.
FA general secretary Alex Horne condemned the original sanctions as too lenient, saying: 'We are disappointed with the sanctions levied by Uefa with regards to the racist behaviour displayed towards England's players. Let's be clear, racism is unacceptable in any form and should play no part in football. The scenes were deplorable and we do not believe the sanction sends a strong enough message.'
