Published 09:29 IST, October 17th 2019
Euro 2020 qualifiers, Bulgaria vs England: Police arrest 6 after match
Euro 2020 qualifiers: Six arrests were made by the Bulgarian police after racial chants heard during the game between Bulgaria and England in Sofia last week.
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The Bulgarian Police have made six arrests in the aftermath of the Euro 2020 qualifiers between Bulgaria and England. The game which was halted twice after vile chants were directed towards the English players, has been in the forefront ever since.
As we are sadly aware, this is not the first time our players have been subjected to this level of abuse and there is no place for this kind of behaviour in society, let alone in football.
— The FA (@FA) October 14, 2019
We will be asking @UEFA to investigate as a matter of urgency.
Bulgaria and racism
For years, Bulgaria Club Football has been plagued with racism. In 2011, the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) was fined after England players Ashley Young, Ashley Cole and Theo Walcott were subjected to racist abuse from fans during a European Championship qualifier. On 20 April 2013, halfway through a match, fans of Levski Sofia unveiled a banner wishing Adolf Hitler a happy birthday. And last year the club was fined after photos from the Bulgarian cup final showed a child making a Nazi salute, alongside another with a swastika drawn on his chest. Now, on Tuesday, October 15, a group of black-clad Bulgarian fans were seen making Nazi salutes and monkey gestures at the English players.
🤝 a good move credits to you M. Borissov https://t.co/28dikRPhTE
— Raheem Sterling (@sterling7) October 15, 2019
Aftermath
The aftermath saw a resignation from the BFU's president Borislav Mikhailov after being urged by their Prime Minister Boyko Borissov to do so. Also, UEFA announced proceedings have been opened against Bulgaria on four counts, one of them being racial abuse. The case will be dealt with by the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body with the date of the meeting yet to be confirmed. The anti-racism campaigners have all come together demanding a ban from the Euro 2020 qualifiers for the nation.
According to the latest statement released by the Bulgarian Ministry, six people have been arrested during the operation of the Sofia police department after establishing they are the perpetrators of disorderly acts. "Due to the immediate action taken by Sofia police, 15 participants in the illegal activity have been identified. For nine of those, there is information collected, including expert facial recognition."
07:46 IST, October 17th 2019