A game between AS Roma and AC Milan was suspended early in its second half on Sunday after Roma fans jeered Milan striker Mario Balotelli and midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng with racist chants. Referree Gianluca Rocchi made the decision to stop play for a minute and a half after two separate warnings -- broadcast over the stadium's public address system that displays of discrimination would not be tolerated - did not stop what the Guardian described as "monkey chants". The match ultimately ended in a 0-0 draw.
Milan's coach Massimiliano Allegri denounced the poor behavior by fans, citing the chants as well as Milan fans' shining of a laser pen in the eyes of Roma's Bodgan Lobont.
"Above all, the culture in Italy is backward," he told Milan's website, adding, "Stopping the game doesn't work, it's a happy medium and like all happy mediums, it doesn't do anybody any good."
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FIFA president Sepp Blatter wrote on Twitter that he was "appalled to read about racist abuse in Serie A last night."
When the chants first began in the stadium at San Siro, Mario Balotelli turned toward those responsible and put a finger to his lips. Fans continued the abuse even after the referee suspended play and Roma captain Francesco Totti went over to address those responsible. The Guardian wrote that Milan supporters chanted "Nerone, bruciali tutti!", meaning "Nero, burn them all" - a reference to the Emperor who "fiddled while Rome burned", but one which could be understood as a racist pun, as "Nerone" can also mean "big black man".
The occasion marked the second time that members of Milan have been the subject of racist taunts from opposing fans, with the first coming in a friendly against Pro Patria four months ago. Midway through the first half of that game, Kevin-Prince Boateng booted the ball in the direction of fans making racist chants, peeled off his shirt, and walked off the field. His team followed and the match ended.
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Boateng was lauded for his actions; the UN invited him to speak to delegates on the importance of confronting racism, while the newspaper La Repubblica wrote of what he did as "the only just and reasonable act we have seen in decades of barbarized football".
Roma general director Franco Baldini told the Gazzetta dello Sport that the nature of the chants was "not clear" and that the boos had been directed at Balotelli because he is a "feared player".
"I clearly heard the Milan fans chanting 'romano bastardo' - 'roman bastard' - which is just as discriminatory," he said. "It's difficult to figure out where the border is between racial discrimination or simple boos."
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