Mexican Soccer Federation will ban fans who use homophobic slurs at games for 5 years

The Mexican Football Federation announced on Monday that fans who yell homophobic slurs at games will be banned for five years from national team games.

To buy tickets, fans will now have to register their personal information and present a QR code and ID to enter the stadium, said Federation President Yon de Luisa. These measures will help identify those who break the new regulation. In addition, to ensure that no one makes an offensive chant, security presence at matches will increase.

“We can’t tolerate discriminatory acts. We can’t play in empty stadiums. We invite our fans to adopt these measures,” De Luisa said during a news conference. “It is not a measure designed to avoid the re-sale, but without a doubt will have an effect on that because now fans, even though they have a ticket, must have registered to be able to enter.”

The policy will go into effect on March 24, in time for the Mexican National team’s qualifier against the United States.

The move is the latest effort by the Federation to eliminate offensive slurs that has led to sanctions by FIFA.

During the Olympic qualifying matches in March at Guadalajara, FIFA’s disciplinary committee announced new measures to prevent homophobic slurs, including a two-match ban on fans and a fine of $65,000.