GENEVA (AP) — In a legal test of freedom of expression in soccer, Norwegian club Brann said Sunday it won a ruling at sport’s highest court about fans chanting “UEFA Mafia.”
Brann's appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport was upheld to overturn a 5,000 euros ($5,500) fine imposed by European soccer body UEFA last year because of the chant at a home game in the Women’s Champions League against St. Polten of Austria.
The CAS judges accepted there was satirical intent to the chant that “cannot be considered offensive or provocative” as the UEFA disciplinary charge stated, Brann said in a statement on its website.
“In a world where freedom of expression is under pressure, this is an important and correct judgment,” Brann chairman Aslak Sverdrup said in the statement.
UEFA routinely opens disciplinary cases against clubs whose fans use the slogan “UEFA Mafia” on banners and in chants at international games it organizes.
In the Brann case, UEFA said Sunday, the loss in court was “only because of the truly extraordinary circumstances of the case and the thin evidentiary basis available.”
A more confrontational case this season saw UEFA order Borussia Dortmund to pay 35,000 euros ($38,000) last October after fans displayed a giant banner at a game against Celtic criticizing reforms to the men's Champions League which now has more teams, games and prize money.
Dortmund was charged for “transmitting a message not fit for a sports event,” for a display that included the phrase aimed at UEFA: “All you care about is money.”
UEFA did get some support from CAS judges in the Brann case who agreed that “UEFA Mafia” can be unacceptable.
“In no way has CAS affirmed that freedom of speech could justify that so-called ‘fans’ make offensive statements," UEFA said.
Instead, the burden of proof should fall on UEFA to show the slogan is used in an offensive and provocative context, Brann said, ahead of the court publishing details of its verdict within days.
“CAS has confirmed that ‘UEFA has the legitimate regulatory interest of securing public safety and preventing disorder or improper conduct during a football match,’” UEFA said, promising its judicial bodies “will continue to apply their policy of zero tolerance against inappropriate behavior.”
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Graham Dunbar, The Associated Press
