Football Notes: Inter Milan Fined $20,000 For Fans Racist Chants Toward Balotelli

Inter Milan has been fined €15,000 ($20,100) after fans "chanted racist slogans" about their former striker Mario Balotelli during a Serie A match on Sunday. Serie A said in a statement that Inter had been fined because their fans "directed insulting chants and expressions of racial discrimination towards the player of another team" (REUTERS, 2/12). ... Barcelona spokesperson Toni Freixa revealed President Sandro Rosell and VP Xavier Faus will travel to Israel and Palestine "to reinforce the institutional and commercial relations" of the clubs with both countries. The trip is scheduled for Feb. 21-23. They will meet with Israel President Shimon Peres and Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas (SPORT, 2/12). ... Around 2,000 Bradford and Swansea fans will travel to the League Cup final for free "thanks to an initiative" from competition sponsor Capital One. The company bought the sponsorship rights for the tournament last summer and has paid for 42 buses that will take supporters of the two finalists to Wembley on Feb. 24 in an initiative called the "Capital One Convoy" (London DAILY MAIL, 2/11).