Bellingham must pay for his obscene gesture
He is just getting out of a ban: England star Jude Bellingham is fined by UEFA. The reason is his obscene gesture in the Euros eight-finals. The 21-year-old is now under special observation.
English football national team player Jude Bellingham comes out of his ban following his controversial goal celebration in the Euros eight-finals against Slovakia. According to UEFA, the midfielder must pay 30,000 Euros. Moreover, he was suspended for one game, but this suspension was deferred for a year. Therefore, he is eligible to play in the quarterfinals on Saturday (18 Uhr/ZDF and MagentaTV as well as in ntv.de-Liveticker) in Düsseldorf against Switzerland. He must not make any more mistakes in the future.
Bellingham saved England from elimination with a goal in stoppage time just before the final whistle against Slovakia on Sunday in Gelsenkirchen. Harry Kane then scored the winning goal in the extra time.
The goal celebration of the former Borussia Dortmund player after his equalizing goal with a backheel had caused discussions. He was accused that his suggested grab towards the opponent's bank was an obscene gesture. The European Football Union UEFA therefore initiated a disciplinary proceeding.
The 21-year-old defended himself against the criticism and shared a video via X, to which he commented: "It was a gesture towards a few of my friends who were in the stadium. There is nothing but respect for Slovakia and how they played today."
Previously, he had already attracted attention with his goal celebration after the spectacular backheel for the criticism of the past days. "Who else?", he shouted and wanted to defend himself against the criticism with that. "Playing for England is a beautiful feeling, but the pressure is great, and people talk a lot", said the young star in the press conference after the game and added sufficiently: "It's nice to give them a little something back."
Despite the controversies surrounding his goal celebration, Jude Bellingham's fine by UEFA and the disciplinary proceeding for an alleged obscene gesture, the English midfielder will participate in the European Football Championship 2024 qualifiers with his national team. With his talent and passion for the game, Bellingham is expected to contribute significantly to England's efforts in securing a spot in the European Football Championship 2024.
