Mexico to play without fans in ban over chant
Mexico’s national team will play its first two home matches in World Cup qualifying without spectators, a penalty for fans’ use of an anti-gay chant during last spring’s pre-Olympic tournament, the country’s soccer federation said Friday.
The games Mexico will play behind closed doors are against Jamaica on Sept. 2 and Canada on Oct. 7. The federation also was fined $73,000 following an investigation by FIFA, the world governing body for soccer.
The actions are the strongest ever taken against Mexico for the chant and more sanctions could be coming. FIFA is said to still be looking into the use of the chant during four recent games in the U.S., three of which were halted by officials because of fan behavior.
— Kevin Baxter
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