Soccer Capsules: FIFA: No replay for France-Ireland WCup qualifier

LONDON — There will be no rematch.

Ireland’s hopes for a replay of its World Cup qualifier against France ended Friday after both FIFA and the French Football Federation rejected requests for another game.

FIFA said it could not interfere despite a hand ball by France captain Thierry Henry that led to the decisive score Wednesday that put France in next year’s World Cup.

"The result of the match cannot be changed and the match cannot be replayed," FIFA said in a statement. "As is clearly mentioned in the Laws of the Game, during matches, decisions are taken by the referee and these decisions are final."

The Football Association of Ireland in Dublin responded by petitioning its French counterpart to ask FIFA to change its mind, but the FFF said the decision by soccer’s governing body’s is final.

"The result of the match can therefore not be modified, nor the match be replayed," the federation said in a statement, adding that it "understands the disappointment and the bitterness of the Irish players, leaders and supporters."

The statement appeared to be the final word in a debate that has gripped the soccer world, with fans and leading politicians in both countries demanding that the match be replayed.

Ireland’s decision to appeal directly to the FFF came after Henry said a rematch would be "the fairest solution."

Henry used his left hand to keep the ball from going out of play, then kicked the ball in from of the goal to William Gallas, who headed in the decisive goal. At the time of Henry’s hand ball, which went unpunished by Swedish referee Martin Hansson despite fervent appeals by Ireland players, the match was about 17 minutes from going to a penalty kicks shootout.

The 1-1 draw at Stade de France, outside Paris, gave the French a 2-1 victory in the home-and-home, total-goals playoff.

Henry was jubilant in his goal celebrations but was more subdued at the end of the match and in admitting handling the ball. Henry said the referee was at fault for not spotting the offense but waited until after FIFA’s ruling to acknowledge the possibility of a replay.

"Of course the fairest solution would be to replay the game but it is not in my control," Henry said in a statement. "Naturally I feel embarrassed at the way that we won and feel extremely sorry for the Irish, who definitely deserve to be in South Africa.

"There is little more I can do apart from admit that the ball had contact with my hand leading up to our equalizing goal and I feel very sorry for the Irish."

Henry again denied deliberately handling the ball, although television replays suggested he slapped the ball once to stop it going out of play and again to set up the pass to Gallas.

The 1998 world champions won the first leg of the playoff in Dublin 1-0, but only scored with the aid of a deflection off an Ireland defender.

FIFA did order Uzbekistan and Bahrain to replay a World Cup qualifying match in 2005 following a referee’s critical error. However, there is no precedent to order a replay because of second-guessing a referee’s judgment on the field of play.

Irish lawmaker Joe McHugh had called on France to follow the 1999 precedent set by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, a Frenchman who volunteered to replay a match in England’s FA Cup after the Gunners won on an unfair goal.

Wenger himself backed calls to replay the match.

"I like justice in sport," he said. "There are only two opportunities. One is France can offer to replay, which I support personally. The second is that FIFA has to make a decision on that issue."

About 30 Ireland fans traveled to the French embassy in Dublin on a double-decker bus Friday, but they were blocked at the entrance by guards and left after an hour.

A protest march from Lansdowne Road stadium to the nearby French embassy was planned for Saturday.

Many in France have urged FIFA to sanction a replay, casting the incident as a national embarrassment.

Francois Bayrou, leader of France’s third biggest political party, Modem, said that the match should ideally be replayed, while government Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said she felt "very sad" that the national team had qualified for the World Cup by "cheating."

"FIFA would do well to look at the rules because I think it would be good, in such circumstances, to decide maybe to replay the match," Lagarde said on French radio. "Firstly, we should respect the referee. Secondly we respect the rules.

"But if the rules are bad, they have to be challenged."

’Hand of Shame’ sparks debate on cheating, replays

LONDON — Irish soccer officials accused Thierry Henry of damaging the integrity of the game when he blatantly handled the ball to set up the goal that booked France’s place at next year’s World Cup in South Africa.

Letters were dispatched Thursday to Paris and FIFA headquarters in Zurich, while Ireland’s justice minister took to the airwaves and echoed its soccer association’s call for the contentious second-leg match to be replayed.

But the response from FIFA and the French matched that of Swedish referee Martin Hansson at the Stade de France on Wednesday night, when Irish protests against William Gallas’ winner, set up by Henry’s handball, fell on deaf ears.

FIFA simply directed journalists to its rulebook which states that results cannot be overturned after a match.

But the Irish did get the backing of the French sports teachers’ union, which said it set a poor example to children to qualify as a result of "indisputable cheating" and was "linked to a ‘very modern’ philosophy stipulating that in all areas, including sports, the end justifies the means."

Football Association of Ireland chief executive John Delaney demanded that the game be replayed.

"I really believe the integrity of the game has been questioned last night," Delaney said. "The governing body of world football have to step up to the plate and accede to our call for a replay.

"Every time I go to a FIFA congress I hear about fair play and integrity. This was not a league game. This was a defining game with the whole world watching."

It was a match heading toward a penalty shootout with the aggregate score tied at 1-1 when Henry blatantly handled the ball — twice — to bring down Florent Malouda’s free kick in the 13th minute of extra time.

As Ireland goalkeeper Shay Given and his defenders reacted with fury to the blatant cheating, the Barcelona forward clipped the ball across for Gallas to knock in the goal that gave France a 2-1 aggregate win and a spot in South Africa.

"I will be honest, it was a handball. But I’m not the ref," Henry said. "I played it. The ref allowed it."

As Henry wheeled away to celebrate, Given led the Irish charge toward Hansson to protest. It took 97 seconds for order to be restored and the game to be restarted. Enough time, proponents of video technology argued, for replays to be quickly — and adequately — scrutinized.

Much like calls for the game to be replayed, however, video replays are off FIFA president Sepp Blatter’s agenda.

The International Football Association Board, the custodians of the laws of the game, halted all experiments with technology to assist referees in 2008, and now tests with two additional match officials behind the goals are under way.

The Irish, though, have an IFAB ally in Scottish FA chief executive Gordon Smith, who continues to push for the use of cameras to rule on disputed goals.

In the wake of Wednesday’s match, Smith wants the issue back on the agenda for the annual meeting in March.

FIFA has four votes on IFAB and four more are held by each of the associations in the United Kingdom. Motions must be approved by at least six votes.

Smith, who also sits on UEFA’s soccer committee, backs a tennis-style review system whereby each team is given two challenges per match, which if correct they retain.

"I keep on suggesting it, but no one is interested," Smith told The Associated Press. "Wednesday night showed what’s at stake at the highest level of the game, but it could have been clarified and cleared up immediately. The game stopped anyway and they could have reviewed the evidence."

Now, though, there should be no retrospective action, according to Smith.

"I have sympathy for the Irish, but I don’t think there is any chance of a replay," said Smith, who played for Manchester City and Rangers in the 1970s and 80s. "It would create a dangerous precedent."

One precedent in English soccer was set by a Frenchman — Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger — who volunteered to replay a match in England’s FA Cup after Arsenal beat Sheffield United courtesy of an unfair goal.

Arsenal scored from a throw-in after a United player had put the ball out due to a teammate’s injury.

Steve Bruce, United’s manager at the time, recalled that incident Thursday as he expressed his dismay at soccer’s failure to embrace video replays.

"Surely it is time now for technology to come into it — it took 15 seconds on the TV (on Wednesday) to establish it was blatant handball," said Bruce, now in charge at Sunderland. "And he didn’t handball it once, but twice. It might be human error but we can change that with the technology we have got. That has got to be the way forward."

-- Rob Harris

Henry says France-Ireland game should be replayed

LONDON — Thierry Henry denied Friday that he was a cheat but said the "fairest solution" would be to replay the France-Ireland World Cup playoff that was decided by his hand ball.

Henry set up the deciding goal for William Gallas by controlling the ball with his hand in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw at the Stade de France. The goal in extra time gave France a spot in next year’s World Cup with a 2-1 aggregate victory over Ireland after two legs of the playoffs.

"Of course the fairest solution would be to replay the game but it is not in my control," Henry said in a a statement.

Earlier Friday, world governing body FIFA rejected a request by the Football Association of Ireland for the game to be replayed.

Henry admitted he handled the ball and felt embarrassed at how France qualified for the World Cup at the expense of Ireland.

"I have said at the time and I will say again that yes I handled the ball," he said in the statement issued to British media. "I am not a cheat and never have been. It was an instinctive reaction to a ball that was coming extremely fast in a crowded penalty area."

"I have never denied that the ball was controlled with my hand," Henry said. "I told the Irish players, the referee and the media this after the game."

The Barcelona striker expressed sympathy for the Irish.

"Naturally, I feel embarrassed at the way that we won and feel extremely sorry for the Irish who definitely deserve to be in South Africa," he said. "There is little more I can do apart from admit that the ball had contact with my hand leading up to our equalizing goal and I feel very sorry for the Irish," he said.

France rejects Irish appeal for World Cup replay

PARIS — The French Football Federation has rejected an appeal from its Irish counterpart to ask FIFA to allow a replay of the contentious World Cup qualifier between the two countries.

The FFF said it "understands the disappointment and the bitterness of the Irish players" but that FIFA’s decision not to allow a replay is final.

FIFA rejected Ireland’s request for a replay Friday, but the Irish FA then appealed directly to the FFF to ask the governing body to change its mind.

Thierry Henry, whose hand ball set up the deciding goal that sent France to the World Cup on Wednesday, said a replay would be the fairest solution. But the FFF’s unwavering stance seems to end any chance of a new match.

France coach sees no need for handball apology

PARIS — France coach Raymond Domenech says he and his players see no reason to apologize for the Thierry Henry handball against Ireland that put the team into the World Cup.

Domenech said his team does not feel guilty about the way Henry handled the ball with his left hand before setting up William Gallas’ goal against Ireland on Wednesday.

The goal gave France a 2-1 aggregate win after two legs of the playoff.

Domenech said on L’Express magazine’s Web site that he "didn’t understand why we have been asked to apologize."

FIFA on Friday rejected Ireland’s request for a replay.

MLS Final

Real Salt Lake embracing overlooked role

SEATTLE — Nick Rimando just finished rattling off all the players and qualities that make Los Angeles such a difficult opponent for Real Salt Lake in Sunday’s MLS Cup final.

Then Kyle Beckerman spoke and in three sentences summed up the position of a team that understands it’s being overlooked in favor of the big names that accompany the Galaxy.

"We came here to win. We think we can win. We don’t really care who we’re playing, who’s on the other team," Beckerman said on Friday.

The names of David Beckham, Landon Donovan, coach Bruce Arena and the general star power that comes with the Galaxy is dominating the attention ahead of Sunday’s championship match. And it’s important for the league to have its marquee team playing in its title game.

But how these underdogs from Real Salt Lake got to the finals might bring a more compelling story. And the role of overlooked upstarts is one they are fully embracing.

"Every finals you’re going to have a top favorite and everyone else is the underdog," RSL midfielder Andy Williams said. "But we’re relishing that role and we’ll take it in stride."

That these players find themselves playing for the league title two years after a major organizational overhaul required a remarkable confluence of dramatics on the final weekend of the season that saw RSL slip into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed.

Real routed Colorado 3-0 to knock the Rapids from the playoffs, but still needed help a time zone away in Kansas City to head to the postseason for a second straight year. They got that assistance when Kansas City scored a penalty kick goal in extra time for a 2-2 tie with D.C. United that eliminated United from the playoff picture and clinched RSL’s spot.

That fortunate bounce only started RSL on its postseason run. They eliminated the 2009 Supporters Shield winners from Columbus in the first-round, picking up a stunning 3-2 road win in Columbus after RSL went just 2-12-2 away from home during the regular season.

Then last week, Real fought Chicago for 120 scoreless minutes, then rallied from down 3-1 during penalty kicks to stun the Fire 5-4 and advance to the title game.

"A lot of people had the chance that we had, and we took our chance and the dominos fell into place for us," Williams said. "Once we got in we knew it was a brand new season and that’s how we treated it."

Two seasons ago, RSL was still a floundering expansion franchise trying to find its footing in the league. They went 6-15-9 in 2007 and changed coaches early, sending away inaugural coach John Ellinger and asking Jason Kreis, the league’s first 100-goal scorer, to retire and become coach.

The transformation to league contender has proved difficult at times. Before the 2008 season, RSL made a massive roster overhaul as Kreis and general manager Garth Lagerwey tried to reform attitudes in the locker room.

"It was very, very difficult and as everybody knows there was not a lot of success in my first season as coach," Kreis said. "It was very, very difficult I found to change the mentality but raise the average level of player on our team. It meant wholesale changes."

The moves worked. Real now has two straight playoff appearances and can bring the first professional sports championship to Utah since the Utah Stars won the ABA title in 1971, even if very few outside Utah know about Real.

"We understand that they have some big stars on their team and of course the media is going to give them some hype, but that’s fine by us," RSL defender Chris Wingert said. "We’re happy to be here, and we’re worried about winning the game and if we win the game we’ll get plenty of love."

-- Tim Booth

Beckham has bone bruise but expects to play

SEATTLE — Los Angeles midfielder David Beckham said Friday he’ll need an injection in his right ankle to reduce pain and allow him to play in Sunday night’s MLS Cup final against Real Salt Lake.

Beckham has a bone bruise in his ankle that’s been bothering him for some time. He said after Los Angeles finished training at Qwest Field on Friday that the combo of the injury and the artificial surface at the stadium won’t keep him from playing for his first title since joining the Galaxy.

Friday was his first day of training since the Galaxy advanced to the final with a 2-0 win over Houston on Nov. 13.

"You got to be kind of careful with it not to get any kicks on it. So it’s definitely been frustrating, but I’m sure it will be fine for Sunday. Definitely be fine for Sunday," Beckham said. "It’s just one of those things that you just have to get through. After five or 10 minutes of the game I’m sure I’ll forget about it."

Now in his third season playing for the Galaxy after his arrival from Europe, Beckham will get a shot at bringing Los Angeles its first league title since 2005.

And his strong play the second half of this season after finishing his loan with Italian power AC Milan has Beckham confident he’s got a few more years of playing ahead of him.

"I’d like to say I’ve got a good two or three, maybe four years left in me," Beckham said. "Have to wait and see and take it week by week, month by month and year by year, especially being 34 years old. ... But I feel good and I feel really fit. I’m playing a lot of soccer and I’m enjoying it."

Beckham will begin another loan with Milan in late December and play in Italy until at least the World Cup arrives. Beckham still hopes for a roster spot with England at the World Cup in South Africa, but reaffirmed Friday that he’ll rejoin the Galaxy after the World Cup is over.

"I’ll obviously, hopefully be involved in the World Cup and then I’ll return for the rest of the season," Beckham said.

FIFA News

FIFA suspends Iraq for political meddling

ZURICH — FIFA suspended Iraq from soccer because of political interference in the national federation.

Soccer’s world governing body says it is "unacceptable" for Iraq’s Olympic committee to disband the federation this week for alleged financial and administrative irregularities.

FIFA’s emergency committee, led by president Sepp Blatter, imposed the suspension after Iraq missed an overnight deadline to reinstate the federation and hand back the headquarters seized by government security forces.

"The clubs and representative teams of Iraq are no longer permitted to take part in international matches, whether friendly or competitive," FIFA said in a statement.

FIFA rules require full independence of national associations. FIFA funding has been stopped and Iraq, which move up five places to No. 88 in the FIFA rankings on Friday, will be deprived of its vote at international soccer meetings.

Iraqi Olympic board member Samir al-Moussawi said Friday the committee was standing by its decision.

"We will continue our contacts with FIFA officials and we will provide them with evidence to support our claims," al-Moussawi told The Associated Press. "Anyhow, Iraqi football teams have no international activities in the next three months and we hope that during this period we will be able to resolve our differences with FIFA."

FIFA said Iraq’s under-16 girl’s team can play in a weeklong tournament in Jordan starting Sunday.

Iraqi soccer has had a troubled relationship with FIFA since its popularity peaked with a victory in the 2007 Asian Cup.

Last year, FIFA imposed a ban on Iraqi teams after the government dissolved the national Olympic committee, along with all sports federations.

The ban threatened Iraq’s participation in World Cup qualifiers but was lifted after the government assured FIFA that soccer was excluded from the decision.

Last month, FIFA granted the Iraq Football Association until April 30, 2010, to adopt new statutes and elect a new board, stressing that the process had to be independent and free of government interference.

Spain regains 1st place, U.S. 14th in FIFA rankings

ZURICH — Spain regained first place from Brazil in the FIFA rankings on Friday, while the United States dropped three places to 14th.

The European champions regained the top spot they lost to the South Americans in July after exhibition wins over fellow World Cup qualifier Argentina and Austria.

Brazil beat England 1-0 and Oman 2-0 this week but was overtaken because older ranking points lost value, and its wins came against lower-ranked opposition.

The Netherlands and Italy stayed third and fourth, while the biggest mover in the top 10 was Portugal, which rose five places to fifth by twice beating Bosnia-Herzegovina 1-0 to qualify for the World Cup in South Africa. Portugal benefited in the rankings because it played more World Cup qualifying matches.

Germany slipped a place to sixth and France rose two to seventh after Thierry Henry’s hand ball set up the goal that sent his country to the World Cup ahead of Ireland, which dropped two places to No. 36.

Argentina, England and Croatia rounded out the top 10, with Cameroon the top-ranked African nation at No. 11.

Australia was the highest-ranked team from the Asian confederation at No. 21.

FIFA to poll players for soccer world team

ZURICH — More than 50,000 players will be polled by FIFA and the international players’ union to select a world’s best lineup.

FIFA and FIFPro said Friday that the first World XI will be announced at the World Player Gala held Dec. 21 in Zurich.

Professional players across the world will vote for their preferred choice in each position.

FIFA organizes the gala where it announces the best men’s and women’s player of the year as voted by national team coaches and captains.

World Cup

Brazil appears on target for sixth World Cup title

LONDON — While soccer’s romantics may wish for a long-awaited first for Spain or a historic African victory on South African turf, the 2010 World Cup looks as if it will end with a sixth triumph for Brazil.

Coach Dunga may have alienated some fans with pragmatic rather than typically Brazilian flamboyant play, but next year’s championship should end with another success for the World Cup’s most successful team.

The last six teams sneaked into the competition through the back door of the playoffs on Wednesday, and the fact that France and Uruguay made it means that all seven winners will be in the field of 32 going into next month’s draw in Cape Town.

The level of expectation will grow day by day until the teams arrive in South Africa next June for the biggest event in the world’s most popular sport.

England under Fabio Capello has its strongest hopes yet of a first win since 1966, Argentina hopes the Diego Maradona magic will rub off on its talented but underachieving players and two-time European champion Netherlands is out to show it finally has the ability to win a world title.

While a mouthwatering final appears to be five-time winner Brazil against European champion Spain — the joint 9-2 favorites with British-based bookmakers William Hill — World Cups frequently throw up surprises.

Remember North Korea knocking out star-studded Italy in 1966, Cameroon beating defending champion Argentina in 1990, Senegal’s victory over 1998 champion France?

In the past three decades only one host — France in 1998 — has won the title, and that likely isn’t going to change in South Africa.

South Africa, whose team has been in disarray after poor results over the past few years, is considered to be among the outsiders. But the talented Ivory Coast, which has the likes of Premier League stars Didier Drogba and Kolo Toure in its lineup, is the leading contender on the continent.

For the likes of Brazil and Spain, anything less than the final will be considered a failure.

Under Dunga, often criticized for a lack of imagination and adventure, Brazil now has strength throughout the team and is far more than just a jumble of attacking superstars. Although Ronaldinho is struggling to get back into the mix, Dunga has the likes of Kaka, Luis Fabiano and Robinho to unlock defenses and provide the goals in front of hard working midfielders and solid, reliable defenders.

Spain has its best squad ever with standout goalkeepers and experienced and hugely talented stars such as Xavi Hernandez, Cesc Fabregas, Andres Iniesta, Fernando Torres and David Villa all playing on the save wavelength.

Michael Ballack remains the solid core of Germany’s lineup as it chases its fourth World Cup title but first since 1990. But the team lacks guile while the Dutch, twice runners up, will hope to shrug off their brittle form in major championships and rely on forwards Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben to bring home the title for the first time.

Under disciplinarian Capello, England won nine of its 10 qualifiers and has a solid look and probably its best chance in decades. Although he has the experience and talent of David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Wayne Rooney and John Terry, Capello has a goalkeeper weakness while Rio Ferdinand’s fitness is now suspect.

With Maradona unable to transfer his greatness as a player to the bench, Argentina looked in danger of failing to qualify and barely made it. Maradona, should he keep the coach’s job going into the finals, now has to get the best out of undoubted talents such as Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero to make an impact in South Africa.

With its squad still filled with aging stars, Italy will struggle to hold on to the title and become the first back-to-back winner since Brazil in 1962. The flip side of that is that Fabio Cannavaro, Gianluca Zambrotta, Gianluigi Buffon and Andrea Pirlo all know how to win to World Cup — and that means the Italians can’t be discounted.

Declining under coach Raymond Domenech, France needed a blatant handball by Thierry Henry against Ireland to make it through the playoffs, while Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz seems unable to get the best out of stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco and Ricardo Carvalho.

The United States has revived under coach Bob Bradley and, after reaching the final of the Confederations Cup in South Africa in June, will target the quarterfinals as a measure of its improvement. The Americans reached that stage in 2002, have reliable goalkeepers, dependable defenders and talented forwards in Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey.

Australia hopes to justify moving to the Asian Confederation and underline its status as an emerging force in world soccer while Japan needs to make the second round to show it is a breeding ground for talented players. The same applies to African nations Cameroon, Nigeria and Ghana, which will also measure success as reaching the knockout phase.

South Korea is back to try and emulate its semifinal appearance of 2002, when it was a co-host with Japan, and the North Koreans, among the 500-1 outsiders, might be dreaming of embarrassing the Italians the same way as in England in 1966.

Greece has made it for only the second time but, still with veteran coach Otto Rehhagel in charge, hopes to produce the same surprising success as when it won the 2004 European championship.

Mexico, Chile and Uruguay aren’t likely to get past the first round, while for New Zealand, Honduras, Slovenia, Slovakia and Algeria, simply being at the World Cup is a measure of success and anything they can achieve at the finals will be a bonus.

-- Robert Millward

Elsewhere

Police: 17 arrests in soccer match-fixing probe

FRANKFURT — German prosecutors investigating match-fixing in soccer say 15 people in Germany and two in Switzerland have been arrested and about 200 games in Europe are under suspicion.

Police said more than 50 raids have been conducted in Switzerland, Germany and Britain, and documents, $1.48 million in cash and other valuables have been seized.

Authorities believe they have arrested the leaders of the gang suspected of manipulating games to make money on betting. No identities were released, although they said about 200 people are involved.

Peter Limacher, UEFA’s representative who appeared at the news conference in Bochum, said he believed it was the biggest match-fixing scandal to hit Europe.

The betting leaders are suspected of bribing players, coaches, referees and other officials to fix games and believed to have made at least $14.82 million, according to Bochum’s police director Friedhelm Althans.

The investigation began in January and has been supported by UEFA, Europe’s governing body of soccer.

"UEFA will be demanding the harshest of sanctions before the competent courts for any individuals, clubs or officials who are implicated in this malpractice, be it under state or sports jurisdiction," UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino said in a statement.

Games in nine European countries are believed to have been manipulated, although none in England, Spain, Italy or France.

The suspected games in Germany were played in the second-division or lower. Other countries involved are Belgium, Switzerland, Croatia, Slovenia, Turkey, Hungary, Bosnia and Austria.

Among the games believed to have been manipulated are three Champions League games and 12 Europa League games, all this year. Prosecutors did not specify whether those were qualifying games or group-round matches.

The Berliner Morgenpost reported Thursday that Ante Sapina and his brother Milan were among five people arrested in Berlin. Ante Sapina’s lawyer Stefan Conen confirmed Friday that his client was in custody.

Ante Sapina was convicted of fraud in 2005 and sentenced to 35 months in prison for fixing or attempting to fix 23 games by paying German referee Robert Hoyzer to rig matches Sapina and his brothers bet on. Ante Sapina’s brothers Milan and Filip were given suspended sentences.

-- Nesha Starcevic

Serbian police make arrest in soccer fan death

BELGRADE, Serbia — Serbian police say they have arrested another suspect in the fatal attack on a French soccer fan in Belgrade two months ago.

Police say a 39-year-old man identified only as Dejan S. from Belgrade is suspected of taking part in the killing of French citizen Brice Taton.

Taton was among a group of Toulouse fans who were attacked by Partizan Belgrade hooligans before a Europa League match between the teams in September. Taton was badly injured in the attack and died several days later in a Belgrade hospital.

Serbian authorities have arrested 11 suspects in the attack and moved to ban violent soccer fan groups.

Serbian authorities don’t release the full last name of criminal suspects.