Sevilla appeal against partial stadium closure

Sevilla have launched an appeal against the partial stadium ban imposed upon the club after it was deemed that there had been offensive chanting during January's Copa del Rey match with Real Madrid.

The LaLiga outfit confirmed it had received the sanction on Wednesday, with the club ordered to enforce the partial closure of the N11 and N12 sectors behind the goal at the north end of the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

It has been widely reported that Sergio Ramos was the target of the chants.

A Sevilla statement outlined the grounds for their appeal to the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), citing the governing body's decision to reduce a similar penalty to a fine following incidents during the visit of Malaga in December.

The statement concluded: "In the event that the Appeal Committee does not consider the appeal, Seville FC will appeal to the higher courts – Court of Arbitration for Sport, first, and Contentious-Administrative Court, if necessary."