"Gun-holding banner" appears in Premier League arena, FA investigation

This newspaper's special correspondent Li Jiayin

"The focus of the game was replaced by a banner." The BBC said on the 25th that in the Premier League Crystal Palace match against Nottingham Forest on the 24th, Crystal Palace fans showed a banner (as shown in the picture), which depicts Nottingham Forest owner Marinakis pointing a gun at the head of the team player Gibbs White. There is a passage in the bubble-shaped dialog box next to White: "Mr. Marinakis is not involved in blackmail, counterfeiting, drug trafficking or corruption!"

The FA is investigating the banner and will decide whether the Crystal Palace will face punishment. The FA has strict regulations on banner information, prohibiting the appearance of foul language, defamatory speech, political slogans and offensive slogans. Nottingham Forest Club was extremely dissatisfied with the matter and believed that relevant parties had failed to do more to prevent the banner from being displayed, and that the banner was inflammatory and xenophobic.

BBC explained why White was "in a shot": Tottenham Hotspur once triggered White's 60 million termination clause this summer, when White almost transferred from Nottingham Forest to Tottenham. But in the end, the midfielder chose to stay in the team, signed a new contract with Nottingham Forest, and talked about the reasons why he chose to stay in the team in an interview with Marinakis.

The Guardian said, "The relationship between these two clubs has been tense recently. The two sides have indirectly competed for the qualification to participate in the Europa League this season. In the end, Nottingham Forest replaced Crystal Palace and qualified for this UEFA second-level event." Crystal Palace won the FA Cup championship last season, so it was qualified to participate in the Europa League this season. But Nottingham Forest then reported to UEFA that Crystal Palace was suspected of violating the "ownership of multiple clubs" rules. UEFA determined that the report was true, Crystal Palace was "downgraded" to participate in the European League event, and the International Court of Arbitration for Sports Arbitration rejected Crystal Palace's appeal.

This series of backgrounds laid the fuse for Nottingham Forest's away visit to Crystal Palace. The outside world also expected that the "atmosphere will be very hot" in this game before the game. Although Marinakis himself did not watch the game in person, Crystal Palace fans still expressed their emotions through banners.