Luton Town have been left ‘bitterly disappointed’ following a row with the FA over a flag inside Kenilworth Road.
The Hatters’ stadium was the venue as England Under-21s won 4-1 against Austria on Monday.
Luton were forced to hide a message on a flag that is believed to have been on display in the main stand at the stadium since 2008.
The flag reads: ‘Luton Town Est. 1885. Betrayed by the FA 2008’.
The message refers to when the FA gave Luton a 30-point deduction in 2008 for financial infringements, which led to them being relegated to non-league football.
Luton Town have been left ‘bitterly disappointed’ following a row with the FA over a flag inside Kenilworth Road
Luton hosted England Under-21s’ clash against Austria at Kenilworth Road on Monday
For Monday’s game, the message: ‘Betrayed by the FA 2008’ had to be covered up, with the flag being folded.
A statement from the club read: ‘The ‘Betrayed by the FA 2008’ message printed at the bottom section of the flag has a meaningful significance to our supporters and the Club.
‘As it is a representation of the most poignant event in the Club’s history and is a symbolic relic of the largest points deduction the FA has issued any club.’
Luton stated that they agreed to host the game under the promise that the flag would be allowed to remain in place.
They also revealed that the FA asked for the flag to be removed in the final build-up to the game.
Luton’s statement continued: ‘In the final build-up to the match, the FA asked for the flag to be taken down, a request that the Club rejected.
‘Instead, the corner was folded, which meant the flag remained in place, but the full extent of its meaning was compromised.
‘This action was demanded by the FA and carried out by a member of club staff who didn’t appreciate the true significance of the action.
Luton said they will only host future FA fixtures on the ‘assurance that the club’s wishes to acknowledge its history are observed’.
‘Had the request been escalated it would have been declined.’
Furthermore, Luton stated that they are ‘extremely disappointed the FA felt they needed to hide the message’.
Luton apologised to fans who were upset at the message not being shown.
In addition, Luton said they will only host future FA fixtures on the ‘assurance that the club’s wishes to acknowledge its history are observed’.
Luton eventually managed to bounce back from their hefty points deduction in 2008 and spent last season in the Premier League before being relegated to the Championship.
