Italian football game cut short after racism incident

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A football game that was held last Thursday in Busto Arsizio had to be stopped. The game involved the teams Milan and Pro Patria and it was cut off in less than 30 minutes because the crowd started harassing and chanting racist remarks against the player Kevin-Prince Boateng, who belongs to the Milan team. The player didn’t take it well and he reacted negatively by kicking the ball to the crowd.

A representative from the other team, Dario Alberto Polverini, pleaded with Boateng to stay but apparently Boateng didn’t heed him as he proceeded to walk off the pitch along with his team members. Among those who walked out was Massimo Ambrosini, who is the captain of the team. Boateng wasn’t the only one targeted as other players namely Urby Emanuelson, M’Baye Niang and Sulley Muntari were also verbally abused by the crowd.

Boateng sounded off in Twitter saying that he was disappointed that such a thing happened. Massimilano Allegri, who was the coach of Team Milan, told the paper, Gazetta dello Sport that he was also disappointed at what happened. However, he respected his black players and considered walking out of the game as the right thing to do.

He later apologised for his team’s actions but he said that this was the only way for them to send a clear message against racism but he did, however, promise that they would have another try at the game. Ambrosini mentioned to the paper that from the moment the game started, he was very disappointed and annoyed with the crowd.

His intention was to give a clear message that they just couldn’t proceed with such a negative atmosphere. There were many who lauded Boateng’s actions particularly the anti-racist organisations. One such prominent anti-racist organisation, FARE, through their executive director, Piara Powar, called for further action from the Italian Football Association regarding the incident.

 

 

Despite the ‘Red Card’ system racism is still alive and well in football

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Racism in football has been a topic of much debate lately, and in all truth it does not really matter if you agree or disagree with the idea of a black players’ football union because the fact that the topic has even come up shows that racism is alive and healthy.

Many former and current football players have spoken up in favour of the idea of creating a black players’ football union, but there is of course obvious opponents as well. After all, by simply dividing the players into a separate union you lay the groundwork for further problems between the races.

Arsene Wenger, the Arsenal manager, stated that he believes the creation of a new union would hurt the overall fight against racism in football, but Nathan Blake formally of Wales international believes the group would be able to have a larger impact.

Last weekend about thirty black players including Rio Ferdinand refused to wear the ‘kick-it-out’ shirts meant to inspire unity. A lawyer that represents black players interested in a union has stated that talks are starting but they are only in the preliminary stages. At the moment the group has titled themselves the ‘Black Players’ Association.’

The topic of support for black players really came into the lineup after the treatment of John Terry-Anton Ferdinand by the English Football Association. Many believe that the English Football Association did not deal with the situation properly.

Although the courts found Terry not guilty of using racist language on the field, the FA decided that he had and assigned him a whopping £200,000 fine along with a four game ban. After this type of situation it is easy to see how some players may truly feel as if their interests are not being represented correctly.

Terry case finally reaches a conclusion

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English football is well-known for its aggressiveness and attractiveness, but its good reputation may be ruined by the ongoing John Terry affair which has been dragging on for over a year now. This is the opinion of David Bernstein, chairman of the FA.

If you follow English football closely, then you are familiar with the John Terry and Anton Ferdinand racism affair which started last season during the match between Chelsea and QPR. John Terry was handed a four-game ban and surprisingly he didn’t appeal this decision.

This has brought an end of this shameful chapter of English football and shows that the FA will certainly review all racism cases. Terry has already apologised for his behaviour, but he stated that he is deeply disappointed by the FA’s decision.

According to Bernstein, football is not a game which should have anything in common with law suits and the Terry affair has certainly had a negative impact on the English game. The FA is doing its best to get rid of racism and through the years they’ve launched many anti-racism campaigns. The Terry affair had many consequences – the resignation of former England coach Fabio Capello is one of the most notable examples.

Bernstein says: “Terry has been sanctioned and I’m glad that this case is closed. The Chelsea player apologised for his behaviour and this should be the end of this matter. We have learned a lot from this case.”

The late decision was criticised by many people, but Bernstein rejected this notion, stating: “This was maybe one of the most important cases in the history of English football and we had to be certain that every evidence and opinion has been reviewed.

We could have finished the case much earlier, but considering the impact it can have on individuals and families, we decided to take the necessary time and carefully review the facts before coming up with a final decision.”

Racism in British football still a major problem

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According to a report by a committee from the House of Commons, racism in British football remains a major problem despite improvements in recent years. The report is in response to concerns after the cases against John Terry and Patrice Evra-Luis Suarez. The chair of the inquiry, John Whittingdale MP believes that the recent reports of UK racism highlight the fact that there is still a significant problem.

Homophobia, say MPs, may now have become the most widespread form of discrimination. When Liverpool’s Suarez was found guilty of racial abuse against Evra from Manchester United he was fines £40,000 by the FA and a ban. Meanwhile John Terry, ex-England captain was cleared in July of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, his fellow football player. Mr Whittingdale said that the committee believes the FA should set an example for all football authorities to follow.

Outside of British football, there were moments of racist chanting during Euro 2012 both during matches and at training sessions. A fine of 80,000 euros (£65,000) was given to the Croatian Football Federation for abusing Italian striker Mario Balotelli. During the 1970s and 80s abuse, both racial and otherwise, was common, fortunately the atmosphere and behaviour at football matches has changed hugely.

The report added that charities and initiatives like Show Racism the Red Card helped to reduce the problem where it is worst – in the grounds, on the streets and online – but more work is required. A joint statement from the Football Association, the Football League and the Premier League stated that the progress made in these matters has been substantial but there are still challenges to be met.

 

Repeated incident of misconduct could see players being sacked

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Footballers risk having their contracts terminated if they are guilty of serious or persistent misconduct. This is according to the behaviour clause in a footballer’s employment contract which ties players to their clubs. The problem is that this is open to wide interpretation and the football authorities and the players’ union are looking at ways of clarifying it.

The PFA chief executive, Gordon Taylor, was speaking yesterday to the culture, media and sport select committee enquiry, ‘Racism in Football’. He said that the contract is too generalised with regards to behaviour and that it should state specifically what an offence of gross misconduct is, for example racist abuse. There was support for this from David Bernstein, the FA Chairman who said it was an ‘interesting area’.

He said that players are very well protected by their contracts and, in his opinion, sometimes over-protected. He said that clubs and players need to clarify what constitutes a breach of contract and spoke of one incident pending where they were waiting to see what the club does. It was generally agreed that it was not a good situation if a club were afraid of million pound lawsuits if they terminated a players’ contract.

John Terry, the former England captain, is currently facing racism charges for allegedly racially abusing Anton Ferdinand of Queens Park Rangers. The committee was told that his trial date had been put back until after the European Championships this summer. David Bernstein made it clear that he thought the decision to strip Terry of the captaincy was absolutely right.

It was a very controversial decision and led to the resignation of the England manager at the time, Fabio Capello. Both the PFA and the FA are in agreement that changes in the way a contract is worded must be made and it is just a question of what form those changes will take.