Espanyol Hit With Proposed Two-Game Stadium Ban For Barcelona Pitch Invasion
Espanyol are looking at two home matches behind closed doors to start off their campaign to return to La Liga next season, after a sanction was suggested by a judge for their failure to control their fans.
In May, Barcelona wrapped up the La Liga title with a 4-2 win at the RCDE Stadium, as Los Pericos careered towards Segunda.
While the Barcelona players were celebrating on the pitch, a number of fans broke past stewards and chased the Barcelona players off the pitch, with the scenes threatening to get very ugly.
Fortunately, there was no harm done to the Barcelona players or staff, but having reviewed the incident, a judge has recommended that the ground be shut for two games to the Competition Committee. That recommendation must now be ratified, as per Sport.
Espanyol have released a statement saying they will appeal the ban, claiming it to be disproportionate and based on biased reasoning. They claim it was not consistent with other cases.
While not speaking to the consistency argument, this incident cannot go unpunished, and such was the nature of the breach, endangering the safety of players, it required serious action. It proves that the power for stadium bans is there, and perhaps could be applied to other areas such as discrimination.
Full Statement:
RCD Espanyol has decided to appeal against the RFEF Competition Committee’s sanction proposal that would mean the closure of the Stage Front Stadium for two matches as a result of the events that occurred at the end of the last Barcelona derby on 14th May 2023.
RCD Espanyol has always spoken out against any violent act or behaviour that could tarnish the image of the entity and our fans. In this sense, our Club has always faced its responsibilities by acting in an exemplary and proactive manner when situations have occurred that violated the values of the Club and the sport. In addition, in the case at hand and as the security forces themselves have recognised, RCD Espanyol had all the means and measures necessary for a match like the one in question last May, collaborating from minute one with everything required by the authorities and with the security forces themselves.
As we have reiterated on multiple occasions, these behaviours have no place in football or in society and we will continue to act in the most forceful way to eradicate them from our facilities.
However, we understand that a disproportionate criterion is applied here, inconsistent with other cases that affects the entire club and season ticket holders from all sectors of the Stadium. A sanction that we consider disproportionate by the Competition Committee, applying in our opinion an exemplary aggravating circumstance that lacks legal grounds or tangible support beyond biased value judgments.
Therefore, in defence of our legitimate interests and those of our fans, we will exhaust all means of appeal and protection at our disposal.
