Benfica will play their first Portuguese league match of the season without supporters present, the club confirmed, after sports authorities ordered the game to be held behind closed doors.
The fixture against Académico de Viseu, scheduled for August 9, will be played in an empty stadium following a ruling by the APCVD, Portugal’s authority for the prevention and combating of violence in sport.
Benfica said the decision followed the use of pyrotechnic devices by their fans across five matches during the 2022/23 season. The club added that the sanction could cost them 1.5 million euros in lost revenue.
