Spain to appeal to CAS after FIFA penalty for Islamophobic chants

What the report says

Spain’s football federation, the RFEF, plans to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport after FIFA upheld sanctions linked to Islamophobic chants by some supporters during a March friendly against Egypt, Al Jazeera reported, citing Reuters. The match was played at the RCDE Stadium near Barcelona and ended 0-0.

According to the report, FIFA fined the federation $20,000 and ordered it to close at least 15% of the available seats for Spain’s next home friendly. The case stems from chants heard during the game, including a phrase directed at Muslim people. Stadium staff responded with warnings, and messages against discriminatory behaviour were shown on the scoreboard.

The article said Spain winger Lamine Yamal, who is Muslim, criticized the chants at the time. Spanish police also opened an investigation, and FIFA later began disciplinary proceedings against the federation. The RFEF argued that the word used was not inherently insulting and that the conduct should have been treated under a different FIFA rule, not the one covering discrimination and racist abuse.

The federation said it had acted quickly once the incidents were detected and that it had cooperated with authorities. The dispute matters because it tests how football’s governing bodies define discriminatory chanting and what penalties are appropriate when supporters target religious identity.