England Midfielder Jude Bellingham is free to play in the Three Lions Euro 2024 quarter-final against Switzerland on Saturday after being given a one-match suspended ban and fine for a gesture he made in the last-16 win over Slovakia.
The 21-year-old’s ban is suspended for a year and he has also been fined £25,400 (30,000 Euros).
The midfielder’s crotch-grabbing gesture towards the Slovakian bench after scoring a late equaliser in the 2-1 victory was investigated by Uefa.
Bellingham, who has made the gesture while playing for his club side Real Madrid, denied that it was aimed at England’s opponents.
Responding to the incident on social media, Bellingham said it was “an inside-joke gesture towards some close friends who were at the game”, adding he had “nothing but respect for how Slovakia played”.
“I thought it was a common sense decision,” manager Gareth Southgate said of the sanction when asked later on Friday.
“Clearly when you score a goal of the quality that he did at the moment that he did at the age that he is you are going to have an incredible rush of adrenaline.
“I think there was no intent in the gesture towards anybody other than communication he has with his family. From our perspective we thought it was a sensible outcome.”
Bellingham has started all four of England’s Euro 2024 matches, scoring two of England’s four goals in Germany, including the 95th-minute overhead kick equaliser against Slovakia.
Meanwhile, the Football Association has been fined £9,310 (11,000 euros) for crowd issues involving England supporters. A fine of 10,000 euros was issued for crowd disturbances, and 1,000 euros for lighting fireworks.
While Bellingham is available for Saturday’s match, Turkey defender Merih Demiral has been handed a two-match ban for a gesture he made during his side’s last-16 win against Austria.
Demiral, 26, scored both of Turkey’s goals in the 2-1 win and celebrated his second goal with a ‘wolf salute’.
The gesture, which is banned in Austria and France, is associated with the far-right extremist group Grey Wolves that is closely linked with Turkey’s ruling coalition party the National Movement Party.
Turkey face the Netherlands in Berlin, on Saturday night
