September 26 – Leading Russian club Torpedo Moscow have been ordered to close a section of their stadium for one match following racist abuse aimed at rival Dynamo Moscow’s English defender Christopher Samba.
The former Blackburn Rovers and Queens Park Rangers player asked not to come out for the second half of Monday’s Moscow derby because of the chanting.
As a result the Russian Football Union (RFU) ruled Torpedo must shut the so-called ‘fans sector’ for their next league match.
However, all other parts of the Saturn Stadium will remain open and there are no restrictions to prevent supporters from buying tickets to sit elsewhere.
After the RFU’s ruling, head of the disciplinary committee Artur Grigoryants said: “There was a note in the delegate’s report that throughout the first half there were chants directed at FC Dynamo player Christopher Samba.
“The delegate has confirmed it once again at the meeting. The referee of the match has also informed the committee that Samba told him about chanting during the first corner kick. Samba has also sent a letter to the disciplinary committee where he confirmed the chanting and that he appealed to the referee during the game.”
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