Marko Arnautovic makes €25k donation after receiving Euros ban due outburst at Leeds United's Gjanni Alioski during Austria v North Macedonia

Austria forward Marko Arnautovic has made a €25k donation to charity after being handed a one-match ban for an outburst aimed at Leeds United's Gjanni Alioski.
Marko Arnautovic has now been banned by UEFA for an outburst at Gjanni Alioski. Pic: GettyMarko Arnautovic has now been banned by UEFA for an outburst at Gjanni Alioski. Pic: Getty
Marko Arnautovic has now been banned by UEFA for an outburst at Gjanni Alioski. Pic: Getty

The incident occurred during North Macedonia's 3-1 defeat to Austria last week on the opening weekend of the European Championships.

Arnautovic, who is of Serbian heritage, celebrated his goal by appearing to shout and gesture at the Leeds United defender, who is of Albanian heritage.

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The former West Ham and Stoke City forward apologised on social media afterwards insisting that he "wasn't racist" while The Football Federation of Macedonia called for an investigation into remarks they described as "nationalistic".

UEFA has now moved to suspend Arnautovic for Austria's clash with the Netherlands on Thursday night as a result of his actions.

Europe's governing body say the 32-year-old has been banned for "insulting another player" which has seen him ruled out of the Group C clash in Amsterdam.

“I don’t know what he told me," Alioski said before the punishment was handed out.

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"His words were hard to understand against the background noise. There are things like that in every game. The most important thing is that we shook hands in the end. That was all clear.

“Uefa has video recordings of the scene that they will look at and analyse. The Uefa authorities have to decide how things will continue."

Arnuatovic reiterated his apology for the incident following the announcement of the punishment and made a donation to charity.

“I publicly admitted my misconduct at the goal celebration on my own initiative, even before proceedings were initiated, and apologised for it," he said.

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"There have been regrettable statements from both sides, but provocations are no justification for my behaviour either.

"Immediately after the game there was a debate and mutual apology. I grew up with people from different countries and cultures and I stand for diversity very clearly. Everyone who knows me knows that. It is very important to me personally to emphasize that.

"Together with the ÖFB (the Austrian FA), I stand for tolerance and integration in all areas of society.

“Because integration is such a concern for me through my own history, I would like to use this case as an opportunity and make €25,000 available for my integration project, for which I myself act as a patron, so that my bad behaviour can also have a good consequence for more cohesion.

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"Above all, I want to be a good role model for children and young people."

UEFA said on Tuesday that an ethics and disciplinary inspector had been appointed to look into the incident. It remains unclear as to whether Arnautovic will receive further punishment other than his one-game suspension and self-imposed fine.

Alioski and North Macedonia, meanwhile, are preparing for a showdown with Ukraine in Bucharest which takes place tomorrow afternoon.

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