Uefa explained its ruling executive committee had “reluctantly taken the decision to approve, on an exceptional basis” the requests from Spain and Italy, citing a lack of rules to prevent the games being switched.
But Euro chiefs pledged to work with Fifa to “uphold the integrity of domestic competitions and the close bond between clubs, their supporters and local communities”.
Ceferin said: “League matches should be played on home soil.
“While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent.
“Our commitment is clear – to protect the integrity of national leagues and ensure that football remains anchored in its home environment.”
Prem chief Richard Masters has emphasised his total opposition to the prospect of English games being played overseas.
However, that policy could change if 14 of the 20 top flight clubs voted to explore the option.
Fan group Football Supporters Europe said: “We regret the decision to allow the requests but all 55 national associations have committed not to make further requests for domestic matches abroad without first consulting UEFA.
Trabzonspor Want to Sign Andre Onana Permanently After Impressive Loan Spell
“The onus is now on FIFA to plug this regulatory gap. We welcome UEFA’s commitment to work with FIFA to ensure that future rules uphold the integrity of domestic competitions.”
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Ceferin doesn’t want more European domestic games played in foreign countriesCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
Victims’ minister Alex Davies-Jones said it “will strengthen safeguards”.
Announcing the change, Minister for Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Alex Davies-Jones said: “Through our Plan for Change, we’re putting victims first.
“This move will strengthen safeguards for victims.
“I’ve heard firsthand how this innovative approach will give them the peace of mind they deserve and rebuild their lives without fear.”
Diana Parkes CBE and Hetti Barkworth-Nanton CBE, who are co-founders of the Joanna Simpson Foundation, said: “For far too long, victims have had to reshape their lives to avoid their offenders.
“Exclusion zones have made victims feel trapped as though they are the ones serving a sentence, with the victim carrying the weight of someone else’s crime.
“This announcement from the Ministry of Justice is the much-needed change that has long been called for and is a powerful step forward.
“By placing restrictions on offenders instead, this will now give survivors the freedom they deserve to live, move and heal without fear. “
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Violent abusers are to be made to stay inside ‘restriction zones’ for the first time under new lawsCredit: Getty
Now, ahead of the release of a new book David has written on his family’s ordeal, the 38-year-old has recalled his battle to free his mum.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, David said reading about the decades-long abuse of Gisèle Pelicot by her husband and dozens of other men gave him flashbacks to the own suffering his mum experienced.
He explained: “It highlighted the normality of these men in our society.
“My dad was not a monster. He was deeply complex.
“If society labels them monsters, it’s washing its hands of how they are created.”
After Sally was jailed, David began to unearth chilling details about how his dad had subjected Sally to decades of domestic abuse – keeping it hidden from him and his brother James.
They discovered how their mum had been dragged down stairs, been raped by Richard on a family holiday to Los Angeles, and had attempted suicide at age 21.
My wife threatened me with a knife & beat me with bottles
Sally had been subject to coercive control – a pattern of abuse where someone is made to feel dependent, isolated, or scared.
She was even forced to hand over her salary throughout her painful ordeal.
These discoveries prompted David to begin years of ardent campaigning, eventually leading to an appeal which reduced her conviction to manslaughter.
Helped by a law passed in 2015 which recognised psychological manipulation as a form of domestic abuse, Sally walked free from HMP Send, Surrey, in 2019.
The landmark case saw Sally’s murder conviction quashed due to new psychiatric evidence, with her final sentencing acknowledging the impact that years of controlling abuse had on her.
As a result, roughly three thousands murder convictions are being reassessed by the Criminal Cases Review Commission to factor in examples of coercive control – with at least five cases having been reopened.
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David fought relentlessly for years to appeal Sally’s murder convictionCredit: PA:Press Association
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Richard had subjected Sally to coercive control for decades
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Sally’s conviction was eventually quashed in 2019, following an appealCredit: PA:Press Association
In his new book, The Unthinkable: A Story of Control, Violence and My Mother, due to be released on Thursday, David showcases his struggle to come to terms with his father’s abuse, and how it’s affecting his life even now.
David also highlights how more needs to be done to protect victims of coercive control.
Speaking on the BBC show Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg about how his dad’s abuse had become “normalised” in their family home, David explained how he “couldn’t understand” at first how his mum had murdered Richard.
Domestic abuse – how to get help
DOMESTIC abuse can affect anyone – including men – and does not always involve physical violence.
Here are some signs that you could be in an abusive relationship:
Emotional abuse – Including being belittled, blamed for the abuse – gaslighting – being isolated from family and friends, having no control over your finances, what you where and who you speak to
Threats and intimidation – Some partners might threaten to kill or hurt you, destroy your belongings, stalk or harass you
Physical abuse – This can range from slapping or hitting to being shoved over, choked or bitten.
Sexual abuse – Being touched in a way you do not want to be touched, hurt during sex, pressured into sex or forced to have sex when you do not consent.
If any of the above apply to you or a friend, you can call these numbers:
Remember, you are not alone.
1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men will experience domestic abuse over the course of their lifetime.
Every 30 seconds the police receive a call for help relating to domestic abuse.
He said: “She’d done the worst act anyone possibly could do. [She] took away my father.”
Following the change in the law regarding coercive control, David, now a domestic abuse campaigner, said he finally had a way to describe the “insidious nature” of his dad.
David added that not having a name for the abuse had “robbed us of our right to have an ability to protect ourselves.”
He explained that he had to dig up his past in order to “find the child” he had left behind.
David continued: “But I knew I was born into this world with a gut feeling that [there was] something inherently bad about my father, and I never knew why.
“I normalised the coercion and control in my home, this life of servitude that my mother lived under… sexual violence was routine.”
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Richard and Sally had married in 1979Credit: Courtesy of the Challen Family
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Sally with her two sons, James and David, on her first day home after her release
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Richard with the couple’s two sonsCredit: Courtesy of the Challen Family
