Luton Town: FA fines Hatters and issues action plan after homophobic chanting at Brighton

Luton have been fined £120,000 by the Football Association for their fans’ homophobic chants at Brighton.

Luton, promoted to the top flight for the first time in 31 years in May, said any fans identified over the chants will be banned by the club.

Luton lost the match at Brighton 4-1 on 12 August.

It was their first Premier League match following promotion.

“Luton admitted that they failed to ensure their spectators and/or supporters conduct themselves in an orderly fashion,” an FA statement said.

An independent commission deemed Luton fans had behaved “in a way which is improper, offensive, abusive, indecent, or insulting with either express or implied reference to sexual orientation”.

Luton said they are “an inclusive, family-oriented club” which “abhors abusive chanting such as this and has a zero-tolerance policy towards discrimination of all kinds”.

“Those involved were committing a criminal offence and anyone subsequently identified will be issued with a club ban and face potential police investigation,” Luton said in a statement.

“Luton Town has worked with supporters in recent seasons to help form the Rainbow Hatters supporters’ group for members of the LGBTQ+ community, who meet regularly to share their experiences of watching the Hatters.

“We will work further with supporter groups to educate and inform on all forms of discriminatory acts to ensure that watching Luton Town is a safe and welcoming experience for everyone.”

Luton sit 17th in the Premier League with six points from their opening 12 games, winning once, and they return to action on Saturday against Crystal Palace at Kenilworth Road.