Curva Nord To Be Closed After Racist Chanting Incident From Some Lazio Fans During Match Against Lecce

Lazio fans are accused of committing racist acts towards Lecce players including Samuel Umtiti in Serie A's ongoing match that took place on Wednesday (04/01) evening local time.

In the first match of the 2023 Serie A season, the referee threatened to postpone the match because of the racist chants directed at Lecce players including Samuel Umtiti.

Many Biancoceleste supporters also traveled to the Stadio Via del Mare to attend the first match of the new year. During the first half, racist chants were heard from the seats of the away supporters, these chants were directed at the players Lameck Banda and Samuel Umtiti.

Referee Livio Marinelli also heard it and then announced on the loudspeaker warning that he was prepared to suspend the game.

Banda was subbed out in the second half of the match. While Barcelona's World Cup-winning loanee Umtiti appeared shaken and comforted by his coach, Marco Baroni

The home crowd constantly chanted Umtiti's name as a show of support. This drowned out the Aquile supporters' chants in protest.

As a result of this incident, the sports judge in Serie A ordered the closure of Lazio's Curva Nord for one day. The decision was made by the sports judge after reading the referee's report and the report from the federal prosecutor's collaborators, who heard the chants from different parts of the stadium.