Football
Stephan Uersfeld, Germany correspondent 10y

Bayern Munich fans protest CSKA Moscow full stadium ban

Bayern Munich fans have protested against UEFA's decision to stage the club's Champions League game at CSKA Moscow this month behind closed doors.

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UEFA ruled in February that no supporters would be allowed to attend CSKA's next European home game as punishment for racist chanting during a Champions League game against Viktoria Plzen in the Czech Republic in December 2013.

The ruling had come after UEFA had hit CSKA with a partial stadium closure after finding the club's supporters guilty of racially abusing Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure in October last year.

However, the full stadium closure for the meeting with Bayern on Sept. 30 will also impact on fans of the Bundesliga champions, with some having booked their flights to Moscow immediately after the fixtures were announced in late August, only to be informed about the UEFA ruling the following day.

The biggest Bayern Munich fan association, Club Nr.12, has now questioned the sanction on the grounds that it also punishes the away fans and invited UEFA to hold further talks on the matter ahead of the meeting with Manchester City in Munich on Wednesday.

In an open letter to the governing body published on Facebook, Club Nr.12 argued that the die-hard fans in Bayern's Sudkurve -- the main fan section at the Allianz Arena -- have battled against anti-Semitism and discrimination for many years, and have also been honoured by the German FA for doing so.

It cited two previous cases -- Schalke's game away to PAOK in 2013 and Northern Ireland's game away to Serbia in 2011 -- in which travelling fans were allowed to attend matches despite stadium closures.

"It defies explanation why this practice should not be repeated in the upcoming FC Bayern match in Moscow," the letter read. "To punish innocent fans not only goes against the values of fair play, but moreover destroys the joint commitment of fans, clubs and UEFA in the fight against racism and discrimination."

However, on Tuesday afternoon, UEFA had still to reply to the open letter sent on Friday.

"It was important to take a stand," Martin Brinkmann of Club Nr.12 told ESPN FC. "But sadly we have not received a reply from the UEFA until now."

Bayern -- who spent 90,000 euros earlier this year to subsidise fans' tickets for their Champions League tie away to Arsenal -- have backed the supporters' bid to attend the club and have contacted UEFA to draw its attention to the Club Nr.12 letter.

Bayern media director Markus Horwick told ESPN FC he is hopeful that a solution can be found, adding: "The Moscow match is still a little while away."

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