NYON, Switzerland (AP) — Rodri and Alvaro Morata were banned Wednesday for Spain’s first match as the new European champion after singing about a sovereignty claim on Gibraltar at the title celebration last month.
Morata and Rodri led thousands of fans singing “Gibraltar is Spanish” in Madrid, a day after the 2-1 win over England in the European Championship final.
UEFA’s disciplinary panel punished the two players with a one-match ban — to be served in the game against Serbia in the Nations League on Sept. 5 — for, among other charges, “using sporting events for manifestations of a non-sporting nature and for bringing the sport of football, and UEFA in particular, into disrepute.”
Gibraltar, which is on the southern tip of Spain, has been a British overseas territory for more than 300 years.
The Gibraltar soccer federation filed a formal complaint to UEFA after the chants by Rodri and Morata.
Rodri is a center midfielder for Manchester City and was named as the player of the tournament at Euro 2024. Morata was Spain’s captain for the tournament and recently completed a move from Atletico Madrid to AC Milan.
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