Man City star under UEFA investigation for antics during Euro 2024 celebrations

UEFA have opened an investigation into Manchester City star Rodri, and new AC Milan forward, Alvaro Morata‘s actions during Spain’s celebrations for winning Euro 2024.

The Spaniards celebrated their record fourth European Championship win after defeating England 2-1 thanks to goals from Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal. Rodri and Morata played key roles in La Roja winning their first major tournament for 12 years this summer.

However, both players could be set to face a two-match ban from UEFA following comments they made about Gibraltar during their Euro 2024 trophy parade.

Spain held their victory parade in the country’s capital Madrid on Monday, at the city’s Cibeles fountain. During the party in the Spanish capital, Rodri took hold of the microphone to lead fans in a chant regarding Gibraltar’s status as an English colony, with captain Morata also joining in.

Now, following a complaint by the Gibraltar FA to Europe’s governing body, it appears as though the two players at the centre of the controversy could be hit with a suspension.

The Gibraltan FA issued an official complaint to UEFA earlier this week in response to the footage. UEFA have now acted by appointing an inspector to look into a potential violation of disciplinary regulations.

A statement from the governing body read: “A UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector is being appointed to evaluate a potential violation of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations by the players Rodrigo Hernández Cascante and Álvaro Morata in the context of conduct that occurred during the public presentation of the UEFA EURO 2024 trophy in Madrid on 15 July 2024. Further information regarding this matter will be made available in due course.”

When announcing their intention to submit a complaint, the Gibraltan FA branded the chants “extremely provocative and insulting”. They have now welcomed the news that UEFA is looking into the incident.

According to a report from Marca, it is believed that the pair could be given a two-match ban from UEFA following the conclusion of their investigation. This is based on that being the exact sanction given to Turkey’s Merih Demiral after using a political gesture to celebrate his second goal in his side’s 2-1 win over Austria in their Euro 2024 round of 16 tie.