England v Serbia: Will the World Cup qualifier be called off as stern warning issued to fans
The Serbian Football Association has told its supporters to keep politics out of Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against England.
In a statement issued before the match in Belgrade, fans were urged not to display banned symbols, flags, or chants.
The warning comes as Serbia serve a UEFA punishment - 15 percent of seats at the 50,000-capacity Rajko Mitic Stadium will be closed after racist abuse was reported during last June’s game against Andorra.
UEFA has already fined the Serbian FA more than €700,000 in the past five years for crowd offenses. Officials are now concerned that any repeat against England could bring even harsher penalties for their nation.
A spokesperson for the Serbian FA said: “The national team is our pride and deserves support that creates a positive atmosphere.
“Let us respect our opponents and their anthem, and make this match a celebration of sport, not division.”
On the pitch, both Serbia and England are unbeaten in Group K, and neither side has conceded a single goal so far.
England top the group with four wins from four, while Serbia sit just behind with two victories and a draw in Albania.
The Three Lions beat Andorra 2-0 on Saturday, September 6 at Wembley. An own goal from Christian Garcia opened the scoring before Declan Rice sealed the win in the second half.
During Gareth Southgate’s tenure, England players were subjected to racist abuse by their own fans; following the 2021 Euros final defeat to Italy, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were abused by fans online.