Football Australia (FA) has officially announced the punishments handed down to Melbourne Victory for fan involvement in the storming of the pitch and eventual attack on Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover and referee Alex King.
The incident, which occurred after Glover threw a flare back at the protesting Victory fans, caused the game to be called off and immediate sanctions to be placed on the fans of both Melbourne clubs.
In a statement released by FA on Tuesday afternoon, Victory was hit with the biggest punishment in the A-League era which includes $550,000 in fines.
Victory will be served with a suspended ten-point deduction which may be triggered to the team if there are any further fan discretions until the end of the 2025/26 A-League season.
The Victory fans will no longer be sold tickets in the active areas on the north and south bay of AAMI Park, whilst the first three rows of either end will be tarped off.
Rows A-J of the north end will remain empty for all Victory home games during the remainder of the season.
Any existing sold tickets in the restricted areas will be cancelled and the ticketholders will be re-allocated to other parts of AAMI Park.
FA CEO James Johnson continually condemned the actions of the fans and ensured that the safety of the players and officials is paramount.
“Football Australia has found that the Melbourne Victory Football Club, through the inexcusable conduct of many individuals who entered the field of play from the Melbourne Victory Active Supporters section at the Melbourne Derby on 17 December 2022, has committed a serious breach of our rules and regulations,” Johnson said.
“The sanctions we have issued against Melbourne Victory are the heaviest in the A-League era. These sanctions are reflective of our desire to remove this behaviour, and those that perpetuate it, from our game.
“They also form part of a broader response to this incident which has seen seventeen bans issued against individuals to date, including three lifetime bans, and preliminary sanctions against Melbourne Victory.
“The field of play is sacred and the safety of our players and match officials is paramount. Those individuals that illegally entered the field of play, caused damage, and verbally and physically assaulted players and officials, crossed the line.
“We have worked closely with Victoria Police to identify these individuals and will continue to do so to ensure those that those that display anti-social and criminal behaviour at football events are not involved in our game in any way.
“I can sympathise with the vast majority of fans and the broader football community who were sickened and hurt by the actions of those individuals.
“The sanctions imposed on Melbourne Victory are a necessary step to ensure we create an environment where we place football first, and our community can enjoy matches.
“We would like to acknowledge and commend the actions taken by Melbourne Victory so far.”
More to come.