UEFA open investigation into 4 Real Madrid stars for UCL celebrations

Real Madrid were sent into ecstasy at the Metropolitano after they defeated their rivals on penalties in the Champions League Round of 16. It was Antonio Rudiger who sparked the celebrations with the decisive penalty, but those celebrations may have crossed the line – UEFA will decide if they did.

The governing body in European football have opened an investigation into three of Real Madrid’s stars for their actions after the final whistle, as reported by Sport. Most notably, as the Real Madrid players danced in front of the Real Madrid section and some departing Atletico supporters, Rudiger made gesture mimicking a throat being cut.

¿La @UEFA no va a entrar de oficio y sancionar a Rudiger por hacer este gesto de ‘rebanar el cuello’ en la celebración del pase del Madrid? Me parece una conducta absolutamente repugnante ¿todo está permitido? pic.twitter.com/eu24PoijE7

— ㊈ (@SSJAdri_) March 13, 2025

He is one of the players being investigated, alongside teammates Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Dani Ceballos. The Frenchman is accused of touching his genitals in a gesture towards the home support, while Vinicius was spotted confronting the crowd both during and after the game. It is not yet clear what Ceballos could be pulled up for.

It is not the first time that UEFA have reacted to ‘crotch-grabbing’ with disciplinary proceedings. In the past both Cristiano Ronaldo and Diego Simeone have been fined for the exact same issue, while Jude Bellingham picked up a €30k fine and a one-game suspended ban for his own version while on England duty at Euro 2024 last year.

Enrique Cerezo: “We have submitted the request to host the Champions League final in 2027, but we don’t know if UEFA will grant it to us in the end.”@la_colchoneria pic.twitter.com/4wQbosSH7n

— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) March 27, 2025

Bellingham was front and centre during the celebrations, notably heading away a bottle thrown at him by Atletico fans. It is not yet clear when the matter will be resolved with the Real Madrid players at risk of being banned for the Champions League games to come, with the first leg of their quarter-final against Arsenal taking place on the eighth of April. Given the precedent with Bellingham, it seems unlikely any of the Real Madrid players will be banned for games, in what would be a hugely controversial move.