Action could be taken against Borussia Dortmund because of the “UEFA Mafia” banner displayed in the Champions League

Borussia Dortmund is likely to face sanctions after displaying a banner reading “UEFA Mafia” before their Champions League game against Celtic on Tuesday.

The nine individual letters of the message were held up by fans on the “yellow wall” in the Westfalenstadion, along with a second banner that read, “You don’t care about sport – all you care about is money.”

Dortmund fans displayed a third banner promoting the website “Reclaim the Game,” a blog that details fans’ criticism of the new Champions League reform.

As per UEFA protocol, the governing body will wait for match reports before considering any action.

UEFA has already sanctioned clubs for using the word “mafia” as it is seen as a “provocative and offensive message”.

In March 2022, Marseille was fined €20,000 for displaying a “UEFA Mafia” banner during the Europa Conference League play-off match against Qarabag, for which the club later apologized. The banner was believed to convey “provocative messages of a political and offensive nature.”

Dortmund fans have a history of anti-UEFA protests. During the Champions League group stage match against Newcastle United last season, fans threw counterfeit money, gold bars and tennis balls onto the pitch and displayed several banners that appeared to criticize European football’s governing body.

During the Newcastle game, two of the banners contained the same message as against Celtic on Tuesday. Drawings apparently depicting FIFA President Gianni Infantino, PSG President Nasser Al Khelaifi and former Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli were also captured.

Dortmund were fined €7,375 by UEFA for throwing objects onto the pitch, but no action was taken about the banners.

A section of the Reclaim the Game blog states: “The magic of European competitions is being increasingly devalued by UEFA and the European Club Association (ECA). With the reform of the UEFA club competitions next season, this magic is in danger of being completely lost.

“The growing number of games in the competitions will push players and fans to their limits. The significantly increased revenue generated by the reforms also has the potential to destroy domestic competitions and pave the way for an upcoming European Super League.”

The new Champions League format was introduced this season and has expanded the competition from 32 to 36 teams. The group stage has been replaced by a ‘league stage’ and teams will now play eight games instead of six.

The format was introduced by UEFA in the hope that it will lead to more competition from the outset, with bigger games at the start of the tournament, as the top teams compete earlier and are not largely separated until the knockout stages.

Dortmund beat Celtic 7-1 on Tuesday night, with Karim Adeyemi scoring a hat-trick in the first half.

(Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)