GFA urges UEFA to take ‘swift, effective’ action following Spanish players' ‘highly inflammatory’ chants

The Gibraltar FA has called on UEFA to take “swift and effective action” to address the “deeply offensive” and “highly inflammatory” conduct of two Spanish national team players who led chants of “Gibraltar es español” during celebrations in Madrid following Spain’s Euro 2024 win against England.

In a letter to UEFA on Thursday, GFA president Michael Llamas and General Secretary Ivan Robba said the chants led by Rodri and team captain Alvaro Morata had caused “anger, dismay and disappointment” in Gibraltar and brought European football "into disrepute".

The two GFA officials said “…the conduct in question is deeply offensive to Gibraltarians, who have repeatedly exercised their democratic rights to remain a British Overseas Territory.”

“While Gibraltar has a border with Spain, and values its close cooperative relationship with Spain and the Spanish people, it is and remains a British Overseas Territory.”

“The conduct is also deeply offensive to the Gibraltar FA since it implies we should not exist as an independent national member association of UEFA.”

“In such circumstances, the conduct of the players was not only offensive, but also highly inflammatory.”

“During a period of what should have been celebrations, the players have – unnecessarily and entirely gratuitously – brought politics into sport, seemingly for no reason other than to cause offence to the people of Gibraltar.”

In the letter, Mr Llamas and Mr Robba said the events in Madrid on Monday had been widely circulated across the globe and had led to repercussions on the ground.

The said the GFA had received emails and phone calls “of a harassing nature” repeating the chant.

“The incitement has also been felt by Gibraltarians enjoying a summer fair across the border in the Spanish town of La Linea where they have been harassed, intimidated and aggressed to a chorus of the same chants some having to flee back to the safety of the border controls,” the letter added.

The reference in the GFA letter coincided with reports on Thursday of at least one violent incident at the La Linea fair in which two young people from Gibraltar were assaulted by a group shouting “Gibraltar español”.

Both sustained injuries and one was treated for suspected concussion, the Chronicle understands.

And in Gibraltar, in a development that underlined the GFA's concerns about the knock-on impact of the scenes in Madrid on Monday, visiting fans from Ireland supporting Shelbourne in their UEFA Conference League match against St Joseph’s chanted “Gibraltar español” during the match.

The GFA said the conduct of the Spanish players was “unlawful” and in breach of UEFA’s disciplinary regulations, which apply during every match and competition organised by UEFA, but also to the conduct of members of a national team during official celebrations following a victory in a UEFA competition.

“In each case, the player’s conduct is not only not in the spirit of sportsmanship, indecent and insulting, but is actively discriminatory on political grounds and/or the grounds of national or ethnic origins,” the letter said.

“The conduct appears to us to be a clear breach of Article 11, where both players have used a sporting event for non-sporting (highly political) purposes, as well as the clear prohibition on discrimination contained in Article 12.”

“It, quite obviously, brings the game of football into disrepute.”

The letter noted that UEFA statutes include the promotion of football in Europe “in a spirit of peace, understanding and fair play, without any discrimination on account of politics, gender, religion, race or any other reason”.

“In such circumstances, we respectfully ask UEFA to take action in this matter and the Gibraltar FA invites UEFA to bring a formal complaint against both players,” Mr Llamas and Mr Robba added.

“The Gibraltar FA is extremely disappointed by the conduct in question.”

“As its statement of 16 July 2024 records, the chants used were not only unprovoked, but also extremely provocative and insulting in their nature.”

“There is clearly no place in football for behaviour of this nature.”

“We trust that UEFA will take swift and effective action commensurate with the seriousness of the conduct in question.”

Below is the full text of the GFA letter to UEFA: