Senegal barred from home stadium after fans riot

CAIRO (AP) -Senegal has been banned from using its national stadium for 2014 World Cup qualifiers after rioting fans forced an African Cup of Nations match against Ivory Coast to be abandoned.

The Confederation of African Football said Thursday it has imposed a one-year suspension on the 60,000-capacity Leopold Senghor stadium in Dakar.

Senegal, which tops its World Cup group, will have to use another venue when it hosts Angola next March and Uganda in September. The team could then advance to a home-and-away knockout round scheduled for October and November to qualify for the tournament in Brazil.

CAF also fined the Senegal football association $50,000, with a further $50,000 deferred for a two-year probationary period.

Senegal fans rioted when their team was close to being eliminated from the African competition by Didier Droga's Ivory Coast on Oct. 13.

Senegalese fans lit fires in the stands and threw objects onto the pitch where players were protected by police. Officers fired tear gas at the fans to quell the riot.

Ivory Coast led 2-0 after 74 minutes, and 6-2 on aggregate, and was poised to advance to the 2013 tournament in South Africa when the match was stopped.

CAF ordered the result should stand and disqualified Senegal from the competition.