Italian federation (FIGC) president Carlo Tavecchio has been barred from the next UEFA Congress and from holding any position with European soccer’s governing body for six months over an alleged racist comment he made in August.
UEFA said its disciplinary and ethics panel had also ordered the 71-year-old to organise racism awareness event in Italy.
The decision was an embarrassment for the FIGC whose own investigation had cleared Tavecchio of any wrongdoing.
Tavecchio caused an outcry when he made a comment about a fictitious African player he named Opti Poba “eating bananas” during the campaign for the FIGC presidency.
He was addressing the vexed subject of the lack of opportunities for young Italian players at professional clubs.
