NYON (Switzerland), Oct 30: England and Turkey were both fined by European football’s governing body UEFA on Thursday for improper conduct after the brawl involving players in their Euro 2004 qualifier in Istanbul two weeks ago.
The Turkish football federation was fined 30,000 Swiss francs (19,000 euros, 22,000 dollars) by UEFA’s disciplinary body for “improper conduct of some of its players and one security staff member” as well as a lack of order in the stadium, UEFA said in a statement.
“The English FA was fined 10,000 CHF for the improper conduct of some of its players in the tunnel,” during the 0-0 draw on Oct 11, it added.
The mass brawl erupted at half-time after Turkey’s Aston Villa defender Alpay poked England captain David Beckham in the face as the two sides went into the tunnel.
Italian referee Pierluigi Collina averted further problems when he took Beckham and Alpay into his changing room and told them to calm down.—AFP