Basta racism in the stadiums, in Spain the state bypasses the arbitrators: the police will have the power to suspend the matches of football in the event of sensational racist incidents in the stands. He writes El Pais, which has had access to a new circular from the Ministry of the Interior with which the State “has decided to take action in the fight against racism and xenophobia in sports facilities following the serious insults suffered by Brazilian Real Madrid footballer Vinicius Junior on 21 May at the Mestalla stadium in Valencia”.
“The department headed by Fernando Grande-Marlaska – writes the Spanish newspaper – has prepared a circular with which it strengthens the role of the agents and the security forces of the State and, in particular, of the police command which carries out the coordination of security in each sports facility".
Now the Spanish police “can urge the referees not to start, block or temporarily or permanently suspend a match when the incidents of racism are serious and can also unilaterally decide to evacuate the stadium or part of it in urgent cases of alteration of public safety or serious risk”.
Racism in stadiums, Spain says stop: the measure
Until now, the protocol that regulates Spanish football pitches, drawn up in 2017 by FIFA and applied by the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), leaves the decision to suspend the game to the match official. With this rule, and despite La Liga having recorded 14 cases similar to the one suffered by Vinicius in Valencia, only once has a match been interrupted in Spain: between Vallecano Ray e Albacete in the Second Division in December 2019, after local fans repeatedly called him a “Nazi” Roman Zozulia.
The new circular from the Ministry of the Interior, which will be sent in the next few days to the State Police, the Guardia Civil and the Government Delegations for its entry into force, outlines “the main criteria that must govern the action of the Safety Coordinator”, a figure who was created by the 2007 law against violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sport and has since then been responsible for the safety of sporting events.
The document specifies that the police can "propose" to the referee to suspend a match when he notices among the spectators “violent, racist, xenophobic or intolerant acts or behaviors.” If the accidents are “serious”, the police officer will even propose “the final suspension”. If the incidents that caused the temporary interruption of the race persist, the police can “propose the partial or total evacuation of the stands or of a specific group of spectators, for the subsequent continuation of the competition”.
This measure must be taken by mutual agreement between the safety coordinator and the referee, and must take into account several factors before taking it. Among these, it must be weighed “the gravity of the events that occurred”, “the foreseeable evolution of events that the eviction order could presuppose among the public” or how it would affect the conduct of the competition. The person in charge of the police force has the power to “order on one's own initiative” the evacuation of the stadium without consulting the referee.
Article published on 3 July 2023 - 12:10
