UEFA announced its sanctions on Wednesday following the abandonment of the match between Kosovo and Romania in the Nations League, after Kosovar players left the pitch due to racist insults. Both nations were sanctioned, but the match, stopped at 0-0, was won on the green carpet by Romania.
Sanctions for racism but no lost matches. UEFA's verdict regarding the interruption of the Romania-Kosovo match last Friday in the Nations League was published this Wednesday. The Romanian federation was fined a total of more than 130,000 euros following the racist behavior denounced by the Kosovar players, when Kosovo lost the match on the green carpet 3-0 (the score was 0-0).
On Friday, the League of Nations meeting between the two countries was heavily disrupted by racist chants emanating from the Romanian stands, with some claiming that Kosovo belonged to Serbia and was therefore not a legitimate country. Racist incidents which had already occurred during a Romania-Kosovo match on September 12, 2023 in a Euro qualifying match.
The Kosovar players left the pitch
While these anti-Kosovo chants were chanted by the Romanian supporters in the stands, the Kosovar players finally made the decision to leave the field and did not return, despite the ultimatum set by the referee. The match was then 0-0 in the 90th + 3, two minutes from the end. Kosovo needed a 3-0 victory to move up to League B directly.
The Romanian federation then published a very incriminating press release against the Kosovar federation, accusing it in particular of having caused false incidents to leave the field. UEFA partly agrees with him since it is Romania who wins the match on the green carpet 3-0, pleading that Kosovo is responsible for the fact that the match did not reach its conclusion.
Heavy fines for Romania, promoted to League B
Romania still receives numerous fines for several infractions: a fine of 50,000 euros and the closure of the stadium for the next match due to the racist and/or discriminatory behavior of its supporters, a fine of 30,000 euros for transmitting provocative political messages unsuitable for a sporting event, 9000 euros for throwing objects, 4500 for fireworks, 8000 for pointers lasers, 12,500 for causing disruption during national anthems and 14,000 euros for blocking public roads.
Additionally, the Kosovo FA was fined 6,000 euros for team misconduct, with five Kosovar players receiving yellow cards during the match. With this decision, Romania finishes at the top of group C2 with 18 points and obtains promotion to League B, while Kosovo, as second, will have to play the B/C promotion play-off.
