Arsenal escape punishment as Cologne fined €60,000 for fan trouble

Joe Wright

Arsenal escape punishment as Cologne fined €60,000 for fan trouble image

Cologne have been fined €60,000 by UEFA following the crowd trouble at their Europa League match with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Kick-off was delayed by an hour after thousands of travelling fans arrived at the stadium without tickets after marching through London.

There were then scuffles with stewards as some supporters, who had managed to get into the stands, attempted to force their way into the away section.

The Bundesliga club have been punished for crowd disturbances, setting off fireworks, throwing objects and acts of damage.

In addition to the fine, they have been given a ban from selling tickets to an away game in UEFA competition, which has been deferred for two years. They have also been instructed to settle with Arsenal over damage caused by fans.

The Gunners were charged for a blocked stairwell in the away section but will face no further punishment.

Skenderbeu will play their next home UEFA match behind closed doors after been found guilty of racist behaviour, illicit chants and setting off fireworks against Partizan. They have also been fined €60,000.

Braga, meanwhile, have been ordered to close part of their stadium and display an '#EqualGame' banner for their next European match after racist behaviour against Ludogorets, while head coach Abel Ferreira has been given a one-game ban after being sent to the stands.

Shakhtar Donetsk must pay a €12,000 fine for fireworks offences in their Champions League match with Napoli.

 

Joe Wright

Joe Wright Photo

Joe is a Senior Editor at Sporting News. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has reported live on some of the biggest games in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup final at the end of a month in Russia.