By now soccer fans have heard the news that an October 1st Atletico Madrid Champions League match against France’s Olympique Marseille ended in some kind of violent clusterfuck with 30 arrests being made and Marseille’s black players being called monkeys at the Estadio Calderon. It’s certainly no secret Spain’s sports enthusiasts have some catching up to do on the racial tolerance front and it seems the rest of Europe has just about had it with the backwards nation. That is until UEFA fucked it up yesterday by cowering to ticket sales! The entire saga is after the jump.

So Tuesday UEFA handed down a ban stating Atletico’s next two Champions League home matches—one against Liverpool on October 22nd and the other against PSV Eindhoven on November 26th—must be played at least 300 kilometers (187 miles)away from Madrid with coach Javier Aguirre banned from attending either for abusing two Marseille players. The team was also fined €150,000 ($204,600) and put on a five-year probationary period. But Spain’s real intervention began when the English Football Association soon after announced they don’t want to play their scheduled February match against Spain in Real Madrid’s Estadio Bernabeu because of the racist taunts against England’s black players there in a 2004 match. It was a come to Jesus moment for Spain if we ever saw one.

Of course, Spain responded with the usual “Who, us?” with over 62% of Spanish sports paper Marca readers saying in a poll that the ban was unwarranted and Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Zapatero announcing he would support the team in their appeal against the ban when responding to a letter from UEFA president Michael Platini asking for an explanation for the excessive arrests. Now, news comes to us that after much groaning from Liverpool fans who already had tickets and travel accommodations for next week’s game, UEFA has reconsidered their decision and will allow Atletico to host Liverpool at Vicente Calderon stadium Wednesday. Come on UEFA! If you don’t hit people where it hurts—in their wallets—how do you make it clear that there is a serious problem? Perhaps this explains why Alfredo Relano of Madrid sport paper AS, was the rare journalist to scratch his head and wonder aloud, “Are we racists? Perhaps we are, without being aware of it”.

Atletico given ban for fan violence [Al Jazeera]
Anger at Atletico Madrid stadium ban [Expatica]
Government backs Atletico appeal [BBC Sport]
UEFA allows Atletico to play Liverpool in home stadium [China View]
Inglaterra nos ofende, es verdad, pero… [AS]