FIFA Imposes $53,000 Fine on Croatia for Fans’ Abuse with Canada Goalkeeper

FIFA has sanctioned World Cup quarter-finalists Croatia for abuse its supporters levelled at Canada’s goalkeeper during the two countries’ group-stage clash in Qatar last month.

World football’s governing body said on Wednesday that its Disciplinary Committee had fined the Croatian Football Federation 50,000 Swiss francs ($53,000) in relation to the behaviour of the Adriatic nation’s fans at the match on November 27.

During the fixture at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Croatian supporters were reported to have shouted insults at Milan Borjan, an ethnic Serb, who was born in Croatia but fled the country as a child.

He and his family left their hometown – situated in an ethnic Serbian region of Croatia – when it was taken by Croatian forces during a 1995 military operation that ended the Croatian War of Independence.

During and after the manoeuvre, labelled “Operation Storm”, an estimated 200,000 ethnic Serbs fled the country, many on tractors.

One banner displayed by Croatia fans during their side’s 4-1 victory was a flag of tractor manufacturer John Deere with the company’s slogan changed to read, “Nothing runs like Borjan”.

FIFA said its charge against Croatia related to breaches of article 16 of its disciplinary code, namely the “use of words and objects to transmit a message that is not appropriate for a sports event”.

There was no immediate response to FIFA’s announcement from Croatia or Canada’s football governing bodies, or from Borjan himself.

The governing body’s punishment came just 48 hours before Croatia take on Brazil in the last eight on Friday. Canada was eliminated from the tournament in the group stages.

Source:- Khaleej Times