Independiente to appeal Conmebol’s tough ruling | OneFootball

The bomb forcefully shook all the structures of Independiente. Executives, players, and fans were affected by the shockwave of the explosion that occurred at 7:40 PM on Thursday, when Conmebol announced the ruling due to the serious incidents that took place during the match on Wednesday, August 20, between the Rojo and Universidad de Chile, in the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana. The club from Avellaneda was disqualified from the competition and was given a penalty of seven international home games and the same number of away games without their fans, along with a fine of 250,000 dollars. In contrast, the U received a lesser penalty: they will play the quarter-finals against Alianza Lima, face the same number of matches without their fans, and must pay $120,000.

The decision from the governing body of South American football caused confusion at Independiente, where they had different expectations and were hoping for a lesser sanction. The Board of Directors, led by Néstor Grindetti, called for an emergency meeting. The top officials met with the institution's Legal Department, headed by lawyer Maximiliano Walker, and also spoke with Ariel Rek, a lawyer specialized in sports law, to begin defining the steps to take following the ruling.

The Rojo is going to appeal the sentence. It is decided that an attempt will be made to try to reduce the number of matches without fans and the amount of the fine imposed by Conmebol, a sum that will be deducted from television rights and sponsorship. Those measures were foreseeable, although in Avellaneda they are also considering the possibility of appealing the disqualification and demanding the postponement of the match between the U and Alianza Lima, which are scheduled for September 19 and 25, in case the resolution does not come out before those dates.

Although initially, there was a version circulating that an appeal could lead to a greater penalty, the Rojo is protected by the procedural principle "non reformatio in pejus," which prevents the aggravation of consequences. Beyond the strategy that Independiente ultimately decides to adopt, there are very few chances of a reduction in the sports sanction at the instance of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). At Independiente, the determination is currently in the evaluation stage by the Board of Directors.

They want the U to pay for the damages

At the Rojo, they also opened a file to calculate the cost of the damages caused by the visiting fans in the upper Pavoni stand and its accesses. The idea is to initiate a legal process against Universidad de Chile to force the trans-Andean club to pay for the damages caused by their supporters during the brawl.

As of midday this Friday, no Rojo executive has made public statements following the ruling. They want to wait until they define the legal strategy to weigh the impact of each word. The only message was a post through which the club expressed its dissatisfaction: "Football lost, the violent won."

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