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A Bayern Munich fan group has announced that it is cancelling its planned protest against UEFA's decision to ban supporters from attending the Champions League match at CSKA Moscow later this month. Bayern's biggest fan group, Club Nr.12, said in a press release that the governing body had warned Bayern that the club could be sanctioned if fans held banners questioning the decision. UEFA had announced in February that CSKA would have to play their next home European game behind closed doors in response to racist chanting during a Champions League game against Viktoria Plzen in the Czech Republic in December 2013. Club Nr.12 subsequently wrote an open letter to the governing body asking that the punishment be relaxed to allow away fans to attend the game, as had been permitted during similar incidents in the past. The group said some supporters had already booked flights to Moscow after the Champions League draw and had only been informed the following day that they would not be able to attend the game. The letter had argued that punishing the Bayern supporters "not only goes against the values of fair play, but moreover destroys the joint commitment of fans, clubs and UEFA in the fight against racism and discrimination." Club Nr.12 invited UEFA to hold further talks on the matter ahead of the meeting with Manchester City in Munich on Wednesday, and Bayern backed the group, contacting UEFA to draw its attention to the open letter. However, UEFA is said to have subsequently told the Football Supporters Europe (FSE) group, which had also backed the Bayern fans, that news of the stadium ban had been freely available on the governing body's website as well as internet news outlets since February. According to the Club Nr.12 press release, UEFA did not react to the invitation to hold further talks. The group also announced that it had planned to display two banners -- reading "Do you care about away fans?" and "Where is your RESPECT, UEFA?" -- during the City match but had cancelled its plans after UEFA warned Bayern that doing so could lead to sanctions ranging from a fine to a partial stadium closure. "The club has therefore asked us to cancel our plans," Club Nr.12 said. "To not add fuel to the fire, we will follow their wish." The group added: "The path UEFA have taken, which is to sanction inappropriate behaviour of a few fans with inappropriate penalties against numerous innocent fans, cannot and will not function in the long run, and nor will the attempt to prohibit free speech in the fan 'curves.'"
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