FA slap fine on Mourinho for referee comments

LONDON (Reuters) - Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has been fined 25,000 pounds ($38,000) by the FA after claiming there was a "campaign" to influence referees' decisions against his team.

(Reuters)

Mourinho, 52, was in trouble for his comments after his side were denied a penalty in a 1-1 draw at Southampton in the Premier League on Dec. 28.

The Portuguese contested the charge but the FA's Independent Regulatory Commission ruled the comments were "improper and brought the game into disrepute" although it said they did not "imply bias on the part of a referee or referees".

Mourinho denied his comments constituted improper conduct but the commission thought otherwise and found him guilty of breaching FA Rule E3.

(Reporting by Mike Collett; editing by Ken Ferris)