UEFA have decided against axing Champions League Final referee Szymon Marciniak, after concerns were raised about his links to a far-right Polish politician.
Marciniak was picked last week to referee the final in Istanbul between Manchester City and Inter Milan on June 10.
It is claimed Marchiniak spoke at a business conference on Monday for entrepreneurs which was organised by Slawomir Mentzen, leader of the Confederation party. The party has been accused of promoting anti-Semitic, sexist and homophobic views.
UEFA conduct a thorough review in light of Marciniak’s appearance at the conference in Katowice, Poland, and have accepted his apology.
As part of the process, UEFA reached out to Never Again, the Polish anti-racism group who raised initial concerns about Marciniak earlier this week, and they requested he remain in his role of referee for the final. UEFA said Never Again asserted that removing Marciniak would undermine the promotion of anti-discrimination.
In a statement, Marciniak said: “I want to express my deepest apologies for my involvement and any distress or harm it may have caused.
“Upon reflection and further investigation, it has become evident that I was gravely misled and completely unaware of the true nature and affiliations of the event in question.
“I had no knowledge that it was associated a Polish extreme-right movement. Had I been aware of this fact, I would have categorically declined the invitation.”
