Incheon United has decided to impose “indefinite suspension” on 124 spectators who voluntarily reported after throwing water bottles to the ground. It is unprecedented for the club to impose suspension on more than 100 fans.
According to the Incheon club on the 23rd, the disciplinary action was decided after more than two hours of disciplinary committee the previous day. The club explained that the disciplinary committee was attended by the team’s executives and board members, including CEO Jeon Soo-soo, as well as legal officials and officials from Incheon City Hall.
Until the 20th, a total of 127 fans voluntarily reported to the club, but 124 were subject to disciplinary action except for duplicate reports. The age range of spectators subject to disciplinary action is reportedly varied from adults to elementary school students. The club will notify the subject of disciplinary action individually, and the subject will visit the club in person and write a pledge.
The team’s disciplinary committee decided to lift the ban on completing volunteer work hours in consideration of fans’ voluntary report. For adults, the suspension of access will be lifted after completing 100 hours of volunteer work and for students, 20 hours of volunteer work in consideration of their academic hours. The Incheon team plans to create a program to help them complete volunteer work, including cleaning stadiums and inspecting goods.
If a party who is subject to indefinite suspension of access enters a home game or causes safety problems, regardless of whether it is home or away, the Incheon club plans to impose a strong additional punishment, including a claim for damages. All those subject to disciplinary action will prepare a pledge containing such information.
The team is continuing to search for fans who have not voluntarily reported. The team had warned earlier that spectators who voluntarily reported water bottle throwing would only be disciplined by the team itself, and if they are caught belatedly after failing to voluntarily report water bottle throwing, they will file criminal charges and seek compensation for damages to the team.
“Not only the club but also various figures from legal circles gathered to review the issue from various angles, and we decided to sternly punish them in accordance with principles,” a club source said. “Only many other fans were affected by some water bottle throwers, and we had no choice but to sternly punish them for the sake of a sound culture of watching soccer games. We will sternly respond to spectators who did not voluntarily report as previously announced.”
Earlier, some fans in Incheon threw water bottles on the ground immediately after the 1-2 defeat against FC Seoul at the Incheon Football Stadium on the 11th, causing a big controversy. It was right after Seoul goalkeeper Baek Jong-beom roared toward the Incheon supporters’ seats shortly after the victory. Since it was a soccer stadium, the space between the stands and the ground was very short, and there were many water bottles, which could have led to a big accident. In fact, Ki Sung-yueng (Seoul) fell after being hit by a water bottle in the critical point.
There have been cases in which one or two fans have been disciplined for throwing water bottles, but this was the first time that more than 100 fans participated and threw water bottles in groups. The Professional Football Players Association also immediately said in a statement, “Please ensure a safe working environment for the players,” adding, “Violence against players is simply difficult to tolerate. We express serious concern about the Incheon supporters throwing water bottles and urge the federation to take stern action.”
The Incheon club apologized for the situation by posting an apology twice in the name of CEO Jeon Hae-soo, and operated a voluntary reporting system for fans who participated in throwing water bottles. It also announced measures to prevent safety accidents, such as strengthening regulations on bringing in goods to the light district of the home game, introducing a pre-reporting system for cheering goods, and planning to launch a clean cheering campaign. 메이저사이트
The federation held a reward and punishment committee and imposed sanctions on the Incheon club of five home games, 20 million won (18,400 U.S. dollars) in punishment, and 7 million won (70,800 dollars) in punishment on Baek Jong-beom in Seoul, saying that the club failed to fulfill its duty to maintain safety and order in the stadium. In line with the federation’s disciplinary action, Incheon has decided to shut down its home spectators’ seats until the Gimcheon Sangmu match on July 5, and decided not to open its own for the round of 16 matches at the Korea Cup scheduled for next month. The 20 million won (12,400 dollars) in penalty will be voluntarily raised by the self-reporter, and CEO Jeon Hae-soo will bear the shortfall.