Brazilian club relegated after fans' racist taunts

SAO PAULO?- A sports tribunal has stripped points from a Brazilian club because its fans racially abused a referee during a match, causing its relegation in a regional championship in southern Brazil.

Club Esportivo lost nine points in the tribunal's ruling late Thursday, dropping the club to the second division of the Rio Grande do Sul state championship. Esportivo will also have to play six matches away from its stadium and pay a $14,000 fine.

The decision came after some of its supporters allegedly called the referee a "monkey" and told him to "return to the jungle" in a March 5 match. The fans also vandalized the referee's car and left bananas on top of it.

Esportivo's lawyers said the club will appeal.

The minnow club had been banned from five home matches in the first trial, but prosecutors appealed saying that punishment was too lenient.

"This should help put an end to these cowardly acts," referee Marcio Chagas da Silva told Brazilian media. "It's a response to society, which was anxiously waiting for justice."

There have been several recent cases of racism in Brazilian football as the country gets ready to host the World Cup in two months.

The Brazilian government has been actively condemning the incidents, and President Dilma Rousseff said she is working with FIFA and the United Nations to use the World Cup to attract attention to the cause. She has been saying she wants the tournament to be viewed as the "World Cup for Peace" and the "World Cup Against Racism."

On Thursday, a player for club Sao Bernardo filed a police report against Parana fans who allegedly taunted him with racist insults in a Brazilian Cup match. Earlier in the week, Gremio was fined about $35,000 for fans' insults against an Internacional defender on March 30.

Last month, a sports tribunal fined Brazilian club Mogi Mirim $21,000 because its fans racially abused former Brazil midfielder Arouca in a Santos match in the Sao Paulo state championship. The tribunal said fans called Arouca a "monkey" and told him to go look for an African team to play for.

The punishment to Mogi Mirim was announced on the same day that South American football's governing body fined Peruvian club Real Garcilaso $12,000 for fan abuse against Cruzeiro midfielder Tinga in a Copa Libertadores match. CONMEBOL warned that the club could face stiffer penalties if similar incidents occur again.

Cruzeiro fans showed several anti-racism banners when Real Garcilaso came to Brazil to play the return match on Wednesday.

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