Soccer-CAS upholds FIFA fines on Mexico over homophobic chant, overturns stadium closure

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Tuesday upheld FIFA fines imposed ​on the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) over the use of ​a homophobic chant by supporters but overturned ‌a ​partial stadium closure ordered in one of the disciplinary cases. CAS said the FMF must pay separate fines of 60,000 Swiss francs ($76,287) and 80,000 Swiss francs after appeals against FIFA sanctions ‌stemming from incidents during four international friendlies in 2024.

FIFA's anti-discrimination monitoring system reported the chant during friendlies against Bolivia, Uruguay and Brazil in the summer of 2024, with two of those matches temporarily suspended. FIFA's disciplinary committee subsequently fined the FMF 60,000 Swiss francs ‌and ordered a 15% closure of the stadium for Mexico's next FIFA match.

A separate case stemming from an October 2024 ‌friendly against the United States resulted in an additional fine of 80,000 Swiss francs. The FMF appealed both decisions to CAS, arguing it had invested significant resources since 2015 in efforts to eliminate the chant and that the sanctions were ineffective in preventing further incidents.

Following a hearing in Miami in March, the ⁠CAS panel ​reviewed evidence including match footage ⁠and concluded that the conduct was "collective and widespread, and not merely a one-off occurrence". "The panel recognises the unique nature of the FMF's situation, who demonstrated ⁠that significant financial resources and efforts have been deployed to eradicate the offending conduct," CAS said.

"However, they found that the prohibited conduct persists, and ​the preventative measures do not carry sufficient legal weight to exempt the FMF from liability." The panel concluded that the ⁠fines imposed by FIFA were "the correct sanction and proportionate to the disciplinary offence".

However, it partially upheld the appeal and annulled the 15% stadium closure. "The CAS panel ⁠considered ​that the FIFA Disciplinary Commission applied an unjustified double standard for proceedings with substantially identical facts," the ruling said.

The appeal relating to the October 2024 friendly against the United States was dismissed. Mexico has repeatedly faced sanctions from FIFA and CONCACAF ⁠over the chant, which is typically directed at opposing goalkeepers during goal kicks.

Last month, the FMF launched a campaign urging supporters ⁠to stop the chant after ⁠FIFA ordered the partial closure of Puebla's Cuauhtemoc Stadium for a World Cup warm-up match against Ghana. Mexico will co-host the World Cup alongside the United States and Canada, opening the tournament against ‌South Africa on ‌June 11. ($1 = 0.7865 Swiss francs)

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