Nemanja Matic has received a ban after he had treated an LGBTQ+ campaign logo on his kit with tape.
The first Manchester United And Chelsea midfielder, who is now playing for Ligue 1 club LyonCover the logo on its sleeve for the last game of the season.
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Matic, 36, used tape to cover a Rainbow -colored Ligue 1 -logo on his Lyon shirt for their last day victory on Angers.
The logo was part of the annual Ligue 1 campaign against homophobia in which every club shirt is decorated with the rainbow design.
Masic Was not the only player to cover the logo, with Le Havre forward Ahmed Hassan who also covered the sleeve design with tape.
According to Belgian news output HLNBoth Matic and Hassan have received two games by the French Football Federation as a result of their actions.
Allegedly the couple will also have to undergo an awareness campaign about homophobia in football.
Matic is supposed to be a member of the Serbian Orthodox Church and Hassan is Muslim.
A third player, Nantes -striker Mostafa Mohamed, escaped punishment after he refused to play with the logo.
Mohamed, who is also a practicing Muslim, chose not to play in the last game of the season instead of covering the logo.
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Mohamed called his ‘values’ because he did not play in Nantes 3-0 win over Montpellier.
He wrote on social media: “Living together also means that this diversity can be expressed differently from one person to the next.
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“I believe in mutual respect – the respect that we owe others, but also the respect that we owe ourselves and our beliefs.
“As far as I am concerned, there are deep -rooted values bound by my heritage and my faith, making participation in this initiative difficult.”
The actions of the Matic, Hassan and Mohamed led the French Minister of Sport Marie Basacq to issue a statement after the last day of the Ligue 1 campaign.
BARSACQ said: “Football has a huge platform and the [French Football] Federation is determined to place this issue on the agenda of the clubs and supporters.
“Homophobic insults and behavior are no longer acceptable.
“Society has evolved and the language in football has to change. There is a full range of sanctions available and they must be applied.”
Although rare, some players have expressed themselves in the past to support the LGBTQ+ community.
Speak six years ago, Atletico Madrid and French international Antoine Griezmann said: “If a gay player wants to come out, he may not have all French players with him, but he will have me.”
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