Independiente knocked out of Copa Sul-Americana after stadium brawl | OneFootball

The Independiente has been disqualified from the Copa Sudamericana due to a fight between fans that occurred in their stadium, leading to the cancellation of the round of 16 return match against Universidad de Chile two weeks ago, Conmebol announced on Thursday.

The Argentine team will also have to play their next 14 games in Conmebol tournaments without their fans (seven at home and seven as a visitor) and was fined US$ 250,000 (R$ 1.2 million), among other penalties.

Meanwhile, Universidad de Chile will advance to the quarterfinals of the Sudamericana to face Alianza Lima from Peru, but received a fine of US$ 270,000 (R$ 1.4 million) and will also not be able to have their fans at the next 14 international matches.

The decision by Conmebol, against which an appeal is still possible, warns that the clubs may receive more severe penalties in case of recurrence and must carry out campaigns on social media and in their stadiums against "racism, discrimination, and violence".

"Football lost, the violent ones won," Independiente said in a photo shared on social media after learning of the decision.

"Justice was done in the sports field with Universidad de Chile declared as the winner," said the Chilean club's president, Michael Clark, who, however, expressed concern "about the punishment of playing seven matches without fans at home".

The director announced that La U is working on an "appeal" against the decision, announced minutes before the start of the penultimate round of South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

The match, played on August 20, was cancelled after a series of violent incidents at the Libertadores de América stadium in Avellaneda, south of Buenos Aires.

Uruguayan referee Gustavo Tejera suspended the match at the beginning of the second half, after fans from both teams clashed using knives, sticks, and stun grenades.

Minutes later, Conmebol officially announced the cancellation of the match through the stadium's sound system.

That's when the most serious episodes of violence occurred: Independiente fans invaded the visitor's section and attacked the few Chilean fans who remained in the stands.

The confrontations led to scenes of extreme brutality, with beatings, burning of seats, and a fan who, in the midst of panic, jumped from the top of the stands to escape the aggression.

The balance was at least 19 injured, two of them in serious condition, and more than 100 detained, the vast majority Chileans, according to Argentine police.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.