By Andrew Warshaw
April 3 – England’s fate over the alleged racist abuse directed towards defender Rio Ferdinand and his brother Anton could be heard by FIFA as early as April 10.
That is the date set for the next meeting of FIFA’s disciplinary committee which is likely to impose a fine if England fans are found guilty.
Rio, who pulled out of Roy Hodgson’s squad for the recent World Cup qualifiers and instead flew to Qatar for a broadcasting role, has expressed shock at the abuse allegedly meted out in a vile song reported to have been delivered by a section of England fans during the 8-0 win over San Marino.
Pressure group Football Against Racism in Europe, which filed a complaint to FIFA, said the so-called ‘Bonfire’ song had an “undercurrent of race”.
FIFA’s disciplinary body next convenes in Zurich on April 10 with no other meetings slated before the end of the season. A range of sanctions are possible with a heavy fine the most likely punishment if the case is proven.
“I would imagine the FA are keen on this being resolved sooner rather than later so the meeting on April 10 seems the most likely date for the case to be heard,” said one member of the committee who asked not to be named.
“If it isn’t heard at that time, the chairman has the right to call an impromptu three-man panel of members to discuss individual cases. It depends how long it takes to pull all the evidence together and whether witnesses need to be heard.”
FIFA boss Sepp Blatter has targeted tackling racism as a major priority in his final term of office while last week UEFA joined forces with clubs and players in a strongly-worded resolution re-iterating that referees have the authority to abandon matches, a ruling that has been largely ignored but has been rekindled in the wake of Kevin-Prince Boeteng’s walk-off in January.
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