Atlético de Madrid conducted an investigation in collaboration with the police following incidents during the Madrid derby on September 29, when objects were thrown from the lower stands of the stadium's southern section.

Federation imposes penalty, though stricter sanctions were demanded

Following the throwing of objects at Thibaut Courtois during the Madrid derby, the RFEF's Competition Committee has decided to partially close the Riyadh Air Metropolitano for three lower-tier games and imposed a fine of €45,000. The club appealed to the Appeals Committee, which partially upheld the appeal, reducing the penalty to a one-match closure of the section, enforced during the game against Leganés on October 20, and lowering the fine to €3,000.

Meanwhile, the Anti-Violence Commission proposed a more severe penalty: a full two-week stadium closure and a €65,000 fine. Atlético has also implemented precautionary measures, suspending ticket sales for away games in Seville, Vic, Paris, Palma de Mallorca, and Prague for fans seated in the section under investigation.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

9 fans expelled from club membership

The process of identifying those involved took a month and included a review of all available audio-visual material. For the past month, our security department has worked on identifying those involved in these incidents, reviewing all available audiovisual material with the police, concluding this process with the permanent expulsion of nine members for actions deemed very serious under the club's internal regulations. Furthermore, a regulation was introduced prohibiting the wearing of any items or clothing inside the stadium that could prevent facial recognition to conceal one's identity,reads the official Atlético statement.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

UEFA also sanctions Atlético

UEFA also investigated the behavior of Atlético fans at the Estádio Da Luz in Lisbon during the game against Benfica. UEFA’s Appeals Committee classified these actions as racist and discriminatory, imposing a conditional penalty prohibiting the sale of away tickets for Champions League matches if such incidents occur again within the next year, along with a fine of €30,000.

Once again, we strongly condemn all forms of violence and pledge to fight against such attitudes, which have no place in football, do not reflect the general spirit of our fans, and harm Atlético Madrid's image, concludes the club’s statement.