The Football Associations of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have been fined for displaying poppies during World Cup qualifiers last month.
England were fined 63 thousand dollars for what FIFA described as the "display of a political symbol" on players' shirts and around the stadium during the 3-0 win over Scotland at Wembley, plus crowd misconduct.
World Cup Qualifying Football. England versus Scotland. A fan Remembers with a poppy banner. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Scotland were fined 28 thousand dollars for displaying the same political symbol as well as crowd problems.
Wales were fined 28 thousand dollars and Northern Ireland 21 thousand for displaying political symbols in the home games against Serbia and Azerbaijan respectively.
The matches were all played in November around Remembrance Sunday when Britain pays tribute to soldiers who lost their lives in the two World Wars.
"It is not our intention to judge or question specific commemorations as we fully respect the significance of such moments in the respective countries, each one of them with its own history and background," Claudio Sulser, head of FIFA's disciplinary committee, said.
"However, keeping in mind that the rules need to be applied in a neutral and fair manner across FIFA's 211 member associations, the display, among others, of any political or religious symbol is strictly prohibited. In the stadium and on the pitch, there is only room for sport, nothing else."
Fifa has also punished the Republic of Ireland with a 7 thousand dollar fine after its players wore shirts commemorating the centenary of the Easter Rising earlier this year.
Both the FA and FAW have yet to respond but Scottish FA chief executive Stewart Regan says it is "clearly disappointing" that Fifa has ruled the poppy is a political symbol.
In 2011, Fifa agreed that the England, Scotland and Wales teams could wear poppies on black armbands during November internationals.
However, this year, under new president Gianni Infantino, Fifa indicated they could punish teams for breaking the rule before the November matches.
-Reuters and BBC
