June 15 – Premier League clubs have unanimously agreed new measures to address the “unacceptable rise” in anti-social behaviour last season.
The move comes in response to incidents of chanting and other behaviour – often between rival clubs – taunting victims and survivors of football-related tragedies.
A Manchester United supporter was arrested following the FA Cup final at Wembley this month after he was seen wearing a shirt that appeared to make an offensive reference to the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, which led to the death of 97 Liverpool fans.
A Tottenham Hotspur fan was banned on Tuesday from attending matches for three years and fined after making gestures mocking the disaster during Spurs’ game at Liverpool in April.
Manchester City and Chelsea both apologised to Liverpool in recent months for Hillsborough-related chants sung by their fans, and appealed for supporters to stop while United supporters have been targeted repeatedly with chants that reference the Munich air disaster of 1958 in which 23 people died, eight of them players.
Following their Annual General Meeting which focussed on potential prosecutions for perpetrators, a statement by the clubs said: “The issues have continued to cause significant distress to the victims’ families, survivors and affected-club supporters, in addition to damaging the reputation of the clubs involved and football in England and Wales.”
The Premier League also confirmed that it had agreed unanimously to amend its owners’ and directors’ test to prohibit fully leveraged buyouts, in which prospective owners borrow all of the required funds, thus loading the club with debt and interest charges.
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