Newcastle United fan banned for three years over Munich chants

James Blake was fined £1,180 and banned from attending football matches for three years for comments about the Munich air disaster

A football supporter who made drunken comments about the Munich air disaster has been banned from attending matches for three years.

James Blake, 42, of Wantage Avenue, North Shields, was fined £400 and ordered to pay £620 in costs.

He was also handed a £160 surcharge after admitting a public order offence when Newcastle United played Manchester City in the Carabao Cup in September.

Blake was filmed outside St James' Park referring to the 1958 disaster.

The accident on 6 February killed 23 people, including eight Manchester United players.

Among the survivors was Ashington-born World Cup winner Sir Bobby Charlton, who died in October 2023, aged 86.

'Intoxicated'

The comments were made on the night of 27 September 2023 ahead of the match between Newcastle and Manchester City, where Blake was videoed by a YouTuber saying: "How? What about Man United? Air disasters, air disasters."

A child, not related to Blake, then joined in.

Blake had been drinking before the game and was said to be "highly intoxicated".

The comments were uploaded to YouTube, then a clip was taken and shared on Twitter, now X, after the cup tie, North Tyneside Magistrates' Court was told.

'Completely unacceptable'

Chair of the bench, Jane Barnes, said the offence was aggravated because children were present and he had been drinking.

She said the football ban was justified, and said: "You knew that it was being recorded and as a result of that, the recording was shown on social media."

Blake has been ordered to pay the £1,180 immediately, and he has also had his season ticket for Newcastle revoked.

A club spokesperson said: "Tragedy-related chanting and gesturing is completely unacceptable and Newcastle United is committed to working with authorities and the wider football community to eradicate it."

Supt Paul Walters of Northumbria Police reminded fans of the consequences of their actions after Blake's conviction.

He said: "This kind of hateful speech has absolutely no place in our communities or online, and we know this kind of behaviour isn't representative of the overwhelming majority of football fans."