Anderlecht punished for offensive chants and defending…

During the competition match between Anderlecht and Club Brugge (1-1) on 3 October, Anderlecht supporters chanted the infamous “All farmers are gay” chant three times to taunt Club Brugge. In addition, they threw cups at the Brugge players, set off fireworks and made a splash in the stadium. No one is hurt.

Last month, Anderlecht had already been punished by the Discrimination Chamber for roughly the same offences. Also in Standard Square (0-1) the hymn “All peasants are gay” sang in September. The RSCA later imposed an alternative sanction that forced the club to use all of its communication channels to strongly condemn such chants.

The Purple & White complied with this punishment, because they got into a conversation with the Fan Board asking them not to sing the choir anymore. In this context, the RSCA club also published a message from player Benito Raman, who sang the agonizing slogan during his time at AA Gent himself after a match, to refrain from such chants. Regarding the use of Pyro, Anderlecht maintains zero tolerance. The club works closely with the football cell to punish fans individually and has already used sniffer dogs to spot torches.

The Discrimination Chamber concluded that the RSCA is on the right track since the previous sanction in October. “Anderlecht is scrupulously implementing the decision made at that time,” the ruling said. Therefore, the Chamber decided not to impose an additional penalty. “We only ask that the club continue to constructively pursue alternative sanction.” If Anderlecht cannot prove this, a fine of 2,500 on the facts will be imposed against the club.

“Who does not jump …”

The national hero himself does not get away with room for racism, because in reaction to the Brussels chants, visiting Bruges fans exclaimed excruciatingly “He who does not jump, is not a Jew.” That scene lasted half a minute.

During the session, Club Brugge outlined the many measures the club is taking to ban discrimination at Jan Breydel Stadium: an institution with an operating budget of $1 million, a “Red Card Racism” awareness curriculum in 20 schools, an award-winning book on racism and a code of conduct that anyone should Contractually obligated to sign it.

The Chamber on Racism and Discrimination certainly praised these efforts, but Thomas Delameleor, Blue-Black’s chief legal officer, also defended the chanting in question as permissible. It will not have racist undertones, as the chants do not intend to harm anyone from the Jewish community. Fans sing it only to distance themselves from RSC Anderlecht, according to Mr Delameillieure, who has claimed the acquittal.

The Chamber made the appeal of Club Brugge. “Arguments like this are long outdated in light of BAS case law and association regulations. By defending the contested cheer, Club Brugge is sending the wrong signal to its supporters and the club community as a whole. That is why we consider it necessary to punish Club Brugge with an alternative penalty kick. “, Seemingly.

Blauw-Zwart is committed to organizing a campaign to educate supporters that such chants are not part of the club’s values ​​and result in severe penalties. In addition, representatives of the fan union must make a guided visit to Kazerne Dossin and all fans must engage in dialogue about this chant. The club must bring this up before January 15, 2022, under penalty of a fine of €2,000.