March 26 (Reuters) - European soccer’s governing body UEFA said it has fined Benfica 40,000 euros ($46,250) for "racist and/or discriminatory behaviour" by supporters during their Champions League match against Real Madrid last month.
Additional penalties imposed for actions by fans included a fine of 25,000 euros for objects thrown during the match and one of 8,000 euros for the use of a laser pointer. Assistant coach Pedro Machado was also suspended for one game for unsporting conduct.
Real won the first-leg tie 1-0 in Lisbon, but the February 17 match was overshadowed by Vinicius Jr accusing Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of directing a racist slur at him - an allegation denied by the player and the Portuguese club.
UEFA opened an investigation into the incident and provisionally suspended Prestianni for the return leg in Madrid the week after, where Real won 2-1 to seal a 3-1 aggregate victory.
The disciplinary action on Wednesday also included an order - suspended for a one-year probationary period - to partially close Benfica’s stadium for a home game.
($1 = 0.8648 euros)
(Reporting by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
