Lyon supporters will be banned from traveling for one fixed match and three suspended matches in Ligue 1 after the racist acts that occurred during the canceled Marseille-Lyon match on October 29, which was finally replayed this Wednesday at the Vélodrome stadium (OM victory , 3-0), decided the disciplinary committee of the Professional Football League (LFP).
This decision comes the day after the arrest of three OL supporters, placed in police custody in Marseille as part of the investigation opened by the Marseille prosecutor’s office for “provocation of racial hatred and racial insults” . The commission specified that it had taken this decision “after having taken note of the tangible elements provided by Olympique Lyonnais (nominative complaints against previously identified supporters)”.
The three men arrested are said to be members of or close to “Mezza Lyon”, a group of openly far-right OL supporters. On October 29, when the Lyon team bus and a supporters’ bus were stoned, leading to the injury to the face of ex-coach Fabio Grosso, Nazi salutes and monkey cries were then reported within of the visitor parking at the Vélodrome stadium.
Lyon sinks into sporting crisis
The match, canceled, was rescheduled for Wednesday without the Lyon supporters, who were banned from traveling by decree. It took place without any incident and saw OM slap OL, 3-0. Lyon, last in Ligue 1, sinking a little further into a sporting crisis.
OL had “strongly condemned the unacceptable racist behavior” of its supporters. The case concerning racist acts was investigated by the disciplinary committee on November 9, the day the LFP decided not to sanction Olympique de Marseille for the stone-throwing of the Lyon coaches, arguing that the incidents had occurred products on public roads and therefore beyond its responsibility. Two legal investigations were opened for “intentional violence in meetings”, after the stone-throwing of the Lyon players’ bus and a supporters’ bus.
Sanctions following a moratorium on fan travel
The disciplinary committee also decided to impose a suspended point withdrawal on SC Bastia and a travel ban on its supporters for two matches for “use and throwing of pyrotechnic devices, damage and racist behavior” of his supporters during the Paris FC-Bastia Ligue 2 match on November 11.
These decisions come the day after the declarations of the Minister of Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castéra explaining that she wanted to “decide on a moratorium on fan travel”. The violence took a more dramatic turn on Saturday with the death of the Nantes supporter during an altercation with Nice fans, for which a VTC driver was indicted and imprisoned on Monday.
