UEFA has charged Spain’s captain Alvaro Morata and midfielder Rodri for breaching its “basic rules of decent conduct” following a controversial song about Gibraltar during their European Championship victory celebration, Soccernet.football reports.
According to FoxSports, the charges, announced by UEFA on Tuesday, also include accusations of “bringing the sport of football, and UEFA in particular, into disrepute.”
Morata and Rodri led a chant of “Gibraltar is Spanish” with thousands of fans in Madrid after Spain’s 2-1 win over England in the Euro 2024 final. Gibraltar, located at the southern tip of Spain, has been a British overseas territory for over 300 years.
The Gibraltar Football Association filed a formal complaint with UEFA, expressing support for the disciplinary proceedings.
In a statement, the association said, “This is an important first step in order to establish the unlawfulness of the chant on the basis of the grounds put forward by the Gibraltar FA in its complaint.”
UEFA stated that its disciplinary body will review the case at a later date, with the players potentially facing suspension from Nations League matches in September.
Earlier, at Euro 2024 in Germany, UEFA banned Albanian player Mirlind Daku for two games for leading fans in nationalist chants against Serbia and North Macedonia.
Morata recently transferred from Atletico Madrid to AC Milan, where he will lead the attack following Olivier Giroud’s departure to the MLS.
Manchester City midfielder Rodri was named the player of the tournament at Euro 2024 and is a major contender for this year’s Ballon d’Or.