Cerezo Osaka have sent a letter of complaint to the Asian Football Confederation after supporters of South Korea's Jeonbuk Motors put up a banner making fun of the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake during Tuesday's Asian Champions League quarterfinal second leg, sources said Wednesday.
The banner hung from the stands at Jeonju World Cup Stadium read in Japanese: "Let's celebrate Japan's big earthquake."
Cerezo staff noticed the banner and complained to the match organizers, who ordered the fans to take it down.
Jeonbuk have made an unofficial apology over the banner, according to Cerezo officials.
"There are heartless people everywhere and not all of Jeonbuk's supporters are like that. However, with something (like that) being said about our country we felt we had to make a complaint," said Cerezo President Nobuyoshi Fujita.
Jeonbuk hammered Cerezo 6-1 to reach the semifinals, going through 9-5 on aggregate.
In August, a game in Belgium was suspended when fans taunted Lierse's Japanese goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima with chants of "Fukushima, Fukushima," in reference to the nuclear power plant that was damaged by the tsunami triggered by the huge quake.