RANGERS' Europa League opponents Sparta Prague are in the midst of disciplinary proceedings with UEFA - and if the club are found guilty, will face a partial stadium closure when they host Steven Gerrard's side next month.
European football's governing body charged the Czech side in the aftermath of their 2-0 defeat at home to Monaco in the third qualifying round of the Champions League on August 3.
The match itself had to be stopped for three minutes when abuse from the stands was aimed at Monaco's Aurelien Tchouameni after the midfielder opened the scoring at the Letna Stadium.
After the incident, Tchouameni and his team-mates ran to the touchline to report racist chanting to their manager and the match officials.
OUR TURN TO BE HEARD ✊🏾 pic.twitter.com/XxgkpRuBZc
— Tchouameni Aurélien (@atchouameni) August 4, 2021
Tchouameni has since revealed that he he has received death threats online in response to his stance against racism.
UEFA opened disciplinary proceedings two days later and have charged the club on three counts: Discriminatory behaviour; Provocative offensive messages; and Throwing of objects.
If Sparta are found guilty of Discrimanatory behaviour then UEFA's rules state that the "club responsible is punished with a minimum of a partial stadium closure".
The Czech runners-up play Sweden's Brondby away from home in their opening group stage fixture before hosting Rangers on matchday 2 - Sparta's next home European game, when a partial stadium closure would be enforced if the club are found guilty.
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