River Plate appeals decision to hold derby against Boca in Madrid

River Plate is not happy with the Argentine national football association, CONMEBOL's decision to block the final's being held on home territory and to force fans to travel across the pond, nor about the fine of around €350,000 and a ban on televising two matches in 2019.

The Argentine derby – as big in Latin America as the Champions' League in Europe – should have been held last weekend, but radical River Plate fans launched an assault on the Boca Juniors' team bus, leaving players with injuries from shattered glass and forcing riot police to intervene with tear gas.

Boca striker Carlos Tévez, who has played for Manchester City and United and Juventus, needed medical attention due to an episode of vomiting and dizziness sparked by the attack.

The second leg of the final was postponed – the first leg having ended in a 2-2 draw – and CONMEBOL turned down an appeal from Boca to be awarded the Libertadores Cup without playing the last match.

Spanish president Pedro Sánchez offered to host the final match in Madrid, where authorities assure that they have sufficient security measures in place to keep hooligans under control.

River Plate radicals have been described as 'the mafia of football' in Argentina, and the leader of one of their branches – the Barra Brava group – was the subject of a police search on his Buenos Aires house where around 300 tickets for the final match and 10 million Argentine pesos (about €250,000) were seized.

In the likely event that River Plate's appeal fails, the Libertadores Cup final match will take place at the Santiago Bernabéu a week on Sunday – on December 9 – with kick-off scheduled for 21.30 mainland Spain time.