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A chessboard, with Sydney FC players and fans as the moving pieces.
The message banner at the front of the bay read: “Sydney, keep those tards in check”. The ableist slur attracted criticism from disability groups, and club CEO Tony Pignata publicly apologised:
“Sydney FC would like to wholeheartedly apologise to disability groups and those people offended by the banner and warn our fans that anyone displaying banners of such nature in the future will be banned from attending matches at Allianz Stadium.
“Sydney FC does not condone the actions of the fans in The Cove responsible for displaying an inappropriate banner during the match on Saturday night.
“There is a process in place whereby our fans have to submit their plans for the banners, including copies of illustrations and exact wording, and the words on the banner were different to the submitted plan.
“We have spoken to the fan group, voiced our strenuous disapproval and made it known in no uncertain manner that any future breaches will be met with bans from attending matches.”
