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News > Sport

Pep Guardiola Accepts FA Charge After Defending Catalan Leaders With Yellow Ribbon

  • Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.

    Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. | Photo: Reuters

Published 6 March 2018
Opinion

Born in Catalonia, Guardiola said he wore the yellow ribbon to show support for imprisoned politicians in his homeland.

Pep Guardiola, the manager for Manchester City Football Club, has accepted a Football Association (FA) charge for wearing “a yellow ribbon,” which represented a “political message.” Born in Catalonia, Guardiola said he wore the ribbon in November to show support for imprisoned politicians in his homeland.

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The action was taken after he wore the yellow ribbon during a game against Wigan. Guardiola gave no official explanation as to why he wore the ribbon before an FA deadline this evening. A hearing has been requested into the case, however, a date has yet to be scheduled, according to the BBC.

Commenting on why he decided to wear the yellow ribbon, Guardiola said, “If one day in prison was already too much, look how many days they've been there now. Like everybody knows, hopefully, sooner or later I can stop wearing it. All the politicians that are in prison, I hope they can leave and go back home soon with their families and continue living the lives they deserve."

FA officials spoke with Manchester City's management about Guardiola's actions in December, and also issued two formal warnings.

On Oct. 27, the Spanish government filed a complaint against the Catalonia government for “very serious” crimes related to the region's independence referendum and the subsequent declaration of independence. Though a majority of Catalans voted in favor of independence, Spain's Constitutional Court overruled the decision and Catalan officials were ordered to appear in court.

Jordi Cuixart and Jordi Sanchez, two key organizers of the Catalan independence movement, were arrested and have not been given bail.

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