Spain hit with partial stadium closure after discriminatory chants in Egypt friendly

Spain will play their next international friendly with a section of the stadium shut after a group of supporters repeatedly sang a discriminatory chant about Muslims during the match against Egypt on 31 March in Barcelona. FIFA opened disciplinary proceedings against the Spanish Football Association for Islamophobic and xenophobic chanting and has now ordered 15% of the venue to be closed for the national team's next fixture.

• FIFA has sanctioned Spain with a 15% stadium closure for their next friendly.
• The discriminatory chants were heard around the 10th minute of the first half and again at the start of the second.
• The Spanish FA claimed the chants did not amount to discriminatory conduct, an argument FIFA's disciplinary committee rejected.
• If Spain reach the Nations League finals, the punishment will be delayed until Euro 2028 qualifying.
• The closure must be applied mainly to the stands behind the goals.

What happened during Spain vs Egypt at the RCDE Stadium

The friendly ended 0-0, but the match left behind an incident that has proved costly for the Spanish national team. A group of home fans was heard chanting offensively about Muslims around the 10th minute of the first half, and again at the beginning of the second. An anti-discrimination message was shown on the big screen at the RCDE Stadium to warn supporters; the warning was repeated shortly after the break and was met with whistles from some sections of the crowd.

FIFA's ruling and the Spanish FA's stance

After the incident, FIFA launched disciplinary proceedings against the Spanish Football Association over chants described as Islamophobic and xenophobic. The Spanish FA publicly condemned the anti-Muslim chants, and head coach Luis de la Fuente called them intolerable, saying violent people use football to carve out a space for themselves.

However, in the written reasons published by FIFA, the Spanish federation argued that the chants did not constitute discriminatory conduct. The disciplinary committee rejected that position and noted that the Spanish FA could not persuasively maintain both that the chant was entirely harmless and that it warranted the activation of anti-discrimination measures.

How the partial stadium closure will work

Spain must play their next friendly with 15% of the stadium closed off. The restriction will mainly affect the stands behind the goals. There is one caveat: subject to FIFA approval, those seats could be filled with community or special interest groups, such as families, students and anti-discrimination organisations.

When Spain will serve the punishment

Spain's next possible international friendly date falls in June. The calendar could change things, however. If the team qualify for the Nations League finals, the sanction will not be applied in that window and will be pushed back to one of the empty dates during Euro 2028 qualifying next autumn.

Egypt's reaction after the goalless draw

After the 0-0 draw, the Egyptian Football Association condemned the chants as an unacceptable and repugnant act of racism. The African body stressed, however, that the behaviour of a small group of fans would not affect the close relations between the Spanish and Egyptian federations.