5 Worst Moments of Racism in Football

We stand in a globalised era where all nations have opened their doors to each other and are moving towards an integrated society. But all of this development seems for nought when one encounters discriminatory incidents that make it clear that people are yet to open their minds when it comes to accepting each other.

Football has a massive and passionate fanbase all over the world. The sport has been marred again and again with incidents of racism not only by the authorities or players but by the fans themselves.

There is even a charity called “Kick It Out” that works to combat racism in football. People of colour become easy targets and are repeatedly faced with open displays of such vitriolic abuse. Though over the years the players have protested in their ways, the issue is far from abated.

An iconic gesture by Dani Alves, a Barcelona right back in 2014 comes to mind here. When a banana was thrown at the young player, in a quick move he picked it up, took a bite and threw it off before hitting the ball.

He later tweeted his comments, satirising the incident. What Alves did may not seem like much but becomes immensely important in the face of staunch bigotry. If you are an ardent fan of the game and have been around for a while, you might remember various instances where players have nearly walked off the field in response to such incidents.

The brave stance that Kevin constant took in a pre-season match when he walked off remains fresh in the memory. His face covered in tears has become a symbolic image of the sad reality about the biases that are so prevalent.

Following the protests from the players, there have been many arrests at the game for indecent actions of the audience members. That, however, has not deterred many white supremacist fans from crossing boundaries and spilling hate all over.

These continued incidents of discrimination on the basis of one’s race, origin and skin colour remain a marring truth over the glory of the game.

Here are five such incidents in the history of football that defy belief:

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#5 Protest of Kevin Prince Boateng

Kevin Prince Boateng

More often than not, the players grow accustomed to the crude racial-stereotyping and for their sanity, choose to ignore it. But, everything has a limit.

In early January of 2013, things became ugly when AC Milan played a pre-season friendly with a lower league club Pro Patria. AC Milan’s player, Boateng had faced open displays of racism before and always ignored it. Twenty-five minutes into the match, Boateng couldn’t take the monkey noises and name calling any longer and snapped.

He took the ball, booted it in the direction of the abusers and stormed off the field. The moment became a show of solidarity as all the players walked off the field in support of Boateng. He later told the reporters, "I said to myself, in this kind of environment, in this situation, I don't want to play football anymore.”

#4 Malky Mackay

Friendly match'Scotland v The Netherlands'

Excusing discrimination is equally condemnable as practising it. May it be a crowd picking on a player or authorities passing snide remarks under sleight of hand, it all qualifies as racism.

Mackay was a common fixture in news headlines when his anti-semitic, fatphobic and sexist sentiments came to light. The former premiership manager was under investigation on account of a series of texts between himself and Iain Moody.

He has been known to use phrases such as ‘fat Jew’ and ‘chinks’ and in another text with a colleague said, “'Go on, fat Phil. Nothing like a Jew that sees money slipping through his fingers.”

The more troubling aspect of the situation, however, is the silence that surrounds it as those in power keep their lips pursed.

#3 Fans of Real Zaragoza

Real Zaragoza

In late February 2006, FC Barcelona played Real Zaragoza in a Primera Liga match. The events that followed brought shame to the community. Playing for Barcelona, Samuel Eto’o had to face repeated abuse all through the match.

Every time he touched the ball, he heard a host of monkey noises and was thrown peanuts at. Eto’o has been subjected to such displays before, but this time, he was done. He decided to leave the field saying “no mas” or no more. He had made his point clear, either this behaviour had to be stopped, or the match would be abandoned.

An announcement had to be made over the PA system advising the audience to refrain from making discriminatory remarks or actions will be taken against them. Eto’o would have walked off, but the players from both the sides, the referee and the coach convinced him otherwise.

#2 National Team of Spain

Spain

The end of 2004 saw the team and its associates infamous for their racially charged sentiments. During a training session the coach, Luis Aragonés, was caught on camera saying the phrase, “Show that you're better than that black shit" in Spanish. The incident caught on, and there were widespread appeals to get him sacked.

In another instance, when Spain played England in a friendly match, the English players of colour (including Ashley Cole as well as Shaun Wright-Phillips) were faced with a hostile environment.

Every time the ball was passed to them, the crowd would jeer imitating monkey noises and hurling abuses at them. The Royal Spanish Football Federation was fined heavily and warned for severe punishments should such cases arise again.

#1 Luis Suarez

Luis Suarez

In a match between Liverpool and Manchester United in 2011, Luis Suarez was accused of abusing Patrice Evra using racial slurs. Suarez had maintained (and still does) that though he had used the word “negro” it held a different meaning in Spanish and was used in that context.

The disciplinary commission found Suarez guilty of using the word seven times and even saying that “He doesn’t talk to blacks”. Liverpool players even protested against the FA by donning t-shirts with Suarez’s face over it. As the case continued, he was proven guilty, fined heavily and was banned from playing eight subsequent matches.