AFC fines Sri Lanka U20 coach $5,000 as Sri Lanka suspends him for two years over disrespect to Maldives

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has fined Sri Lanka U20 coach Mohamed Imran $5,000 after he disrespected Maldivians following his team's defeat to Maldives in the AFC U20 qualifiers. Sri Lanka's football federation has also decided to suspend him from all football activities for two years. The match was played in Myanmar in early September. After the game, AFC considered the incidents an ethical issue and decided to fine the coach $5,000. Sri Lanka had also decided to punish the coach before AFC acted. Sri Lanka decided to suspend him from all football activities for two years. After losing 4-0 to Maldives, the coach expressed strong dissatisfaction with the referee's decisions. He also confronted Maldives players and officials and spoke to them using disrespectful language. The Sri Lanka Football Federation said the coach's conduct is not something that should be seen from someone leading young players. It said his actions cannot be accepted in any way and that it decided to act in the interest of football for everyone. In the tournament, Sri Lanka lost all three matches and finished at the bottom of the group after losing to Maldives. In contrast, Maldives secured a place in the qualification round. Sri Lanka and Maldives are two countries with a long history in football. Especially after Maldives beat Sri Lanka in the semifinals of the 1997 SAF Championship and went to the final, respect between the two countries has been high. It also stems from the increased number of Sri Lankan players playing in Maldives and the large amount of assistance Maldives has received from that country's football.