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UEFA has fined Qarabag’s youth team €5,000 (£4,379) after at least one fan allegedly racially abused them in an academy match against Chelsea in Azerbaijan.
The youth team were also ordered to play their next UEFA competition match as a host club behind closed doors, although this punishment has been suspended for one year.
Arsenal striker Sol Gordon (17 years old) opened the scoring in the 57th minute at Azerson Stadium in Baku and celebrated the goal close to a section of fans who ran to confront the players in the match, which witnessed a small attendance.
Eyewitnesses told BBC Sport they saw and heard the monkeys’ movements.
A UEFA Youth League match on 5 November was halted for several minutes after players complained to Ukrainian referee Dmytro Kubriak, and the coaching staff, including coach Callum MacFarlane, took part in the discussions.
It seemed that Chelsea might stop playing the match, but they continued playing after the stop and won 5-0.
Chelsea said after the match that it had raised the matter with UEFA and added: “We are proud of the way our players and staff responded to the incident on the field, quickly reporting it to the referee, and we commend those who dealt with the matter professionally and appropriately in line with UEFA protocols.”
A Qarabag spokesman apologized at the time, saying it “does not represent the club’s values” and promised to investigate the matter “thoroughly”.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid were also fined and their fans suspended for making monkey gestures, sounds and Nazi salutes, during their 4-0 Champions League defeat to Arsenal on 21 October.
UEFA fined the La Liga club €30,000 (£26,275) and gave them a one-match suspended ban from selling tickets to their fans for an away match.
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