“Blacks!” they shout from the stands. It is not a simple expression, they expel it with anger on her face, with poison in her mouth, with contempt in her blood. They force the matches to stop and they don’t care. They imitate moans and movements of the monkeys, and they do it to reinforce their aggression against some black soccer players. On some pitches they have thrown bananas onto the playing field, while they wrap themselves in their fascist flags and continue with their choreography of hate. They are racist, they are xenophobic and they are a threat that expands in world soccer stadiums.
(In addition: Vinicius case: they reveal possible sanctions for Valencia fans accused of racism)
It is not a sporadic issue. Racist attacks are not isolated events. They have suffered from anonymous footballers to the most famous of race or black descent at different times: Eto’o, Dani Alves, Pogba, Sterling, Mbappé, Vinicius, Balotelli, Neymar… and many more. The phenomenon has been reactivated, it spreads like a virus that penetrates the stadiums. The footballers endure, but not always, they also complain and burst into tears or anger towards the stands (Hugo Rodallega bursts out and denounces racism through tears: he said they called him ‘monkey’).
unfortunate episodes
The most recent episode was recorded on October 14 in Sofia, during the qualifying match for the European Championship between Bulgaria and England. In the first part, English footballers suffered constant racist attacks. Twice the referee stopped the game. He was about to call it off. The players, with apparent indifference, resisted the insults and played to the end. The English Federation demanded an investigation. Uefa (European football union) sanctioned Bulgaria with a game behind closed doors and a fine of 75,000 euros. But these hate fans don’t seem to care.
Kick It Out is an organization that has been fighting for equality and inclusion in English football for 26 years. He has studied this phenomenon in depth, keeps an annual record of attacks on professional and non-professional footballers. He campaigns to stop this evil. When contacted by EL TIEMPO, they reply that the situation is alarming and very careful.
“We believe that racism is still a major problem in football. Our latest statistics show an increase in cases for the sixth year in a row. While racism is still a problem in society, it will likely always manifest itself in football to some degree. It is a global problem that has been around for hundreds of years and unfortunately cannot be solved overnight,” a spokesperson for the organization said.
While racism is still a problem in society, it will likely always manifest itself in football to some degree. It is a global problem that has been around for hundreds of years.
In the 2018-2019 season, this body registered 422 cases of different racist attacks in football in England, both in the Premier League and in grassroots football. A year earlier there were 319. The cases, of fans, and also of players insulting players, are increasing. At the moment, the Spanish goalkeeper Kiko Casilla, from English Leeds, is facing a 12-match ban for using racist insults against an opponent. The alarms are going off, not only in England, where they are an example for their fight against ‘hooligans’ and where they are now fighting to eradicate this racial hatred.
Hateful fans
Brazilian Dani Alves was walking towards the corner kick. He wore the Barcelona shirt. He was running in 2014. He did not receive coins or stones, he received something more offensive: bananas. The rival fans, from Villarreal, they wanted to mistreat him. Dani stopped, picked up one of the bananas, peeled it off and ate it…
Comparing soccer players to apes because they are black, African, Afro-descendant, Latino or from ethnic minorities is one of the most repeated attacks in Europe, where many of the radical supporters, known as ultras, they are politicized and have far-right leanings, which they demonstrate in their hateful choruses, complete with Nazi salutes and racist paraphernalia.
The Spanish researcher Javier Durán González, in his book El vandalismo en futbol, in the 1990s, already put his finger on the sore spot about these groups of fans: “The racist and xenophobic outbreaks that are emerging in our Western societies are finding around professional soccer, among the ultra groups of fans, a good breeding ground for recruiting supporters and a privileged place for their symbolic exhibitionism,” Durán wrote.
(In context: Vinicius Junior, on the attack: he shows all the racist attacks he received, video)
The racist and xenophobic outbreaks that are emerging in our western societies are found around professional football, among ultra groups of fans
The footballers feel unprotected. Recently, Yaya Touré, a former Barcelona and Manchester City player, assured that Fifa does not care about the issue of racism. He said it about the episode in Bulgaria.
The president of Fifa, Gianni Infantino, tries to show a tough position: “We must not be afraid of condemning racists, we must fight them to the end”, he said recently, alarmed by the cases in Italian football, where racism is on the rise, as happened in the Atalanta-Fiorentina match, arrested several times for racist shouting against the Brazilian Dalbert Henrique, or in the case against the Ivorian Franck Kessié, from Milan, who was yelled at as a monkey.
What can be done? Education and a strong hand is what the Kick It Out spokesman says. “We believe that, where possible, education is the most sustainable solution to this problem. However, there are cases that require strong punishments, particularly when it comes to repeat offenders. Punishments must be strong to be a necessary deterrent”, they say to EL TIEMPO.
Pavel Klymenko belongs to the development office of FARE (Football against racism in Europe) and tells EL TIEMPO about the work they have done to try to eradicate this evil. He says that in the last 20 years there have been some advances, but that racism in stadiums is still a major problem.
“Racism is different from general abuse and swearing during football matches as it targets minority players and fans sending a message that they are less human, worth less than everyone else. It leaves deep scars especially with young players,” he says.
FARE has a network of more than 140 civil society organizations, minority groups, fan groups and human rights groups around the world, working to combat discrimination. “Through our work monitoring discrimination in Uefa and Fifa matches we have managed to reduce the number of discriminatory displays in Uefa international competitions in the last 6 years”, says Klymenko.
(Also: Vinicius Junior: Valencia, forceful against fans who used racist insults)
Through our monitoring work we have managed to reduce the number of discriminatory exhibitions in UEFA international competitions in the last 6 years”
He assures that they also work on other forms of discrimination present in stadiums such as “sexism, homophobia or Islamophobia (feeling of hatred towards Islam) and anti-Semitism.”
LaLiga has reported that “it has requested all the images to investigate” the incidents that occurred in mestalla during the match between Valencia and Real Madrid (1-0) in which the Brazilian Vinicius Junior denounced racist insults by some fans.
“Given the incidents that occurred during Valencia CF – Real Madrid CF at the Mestalla Stadium, LaLiga reports that it has requested all available images to investigate what happened. Once the investigation is complete, in the event of detecting a hate crime, LaLiga would proceed to take the appropriate legal actions,” the entity said in a statement.
Colombian cases
“A dirty black bastard (a dirty black bastard)”, shouted a not very large group of fans, those who hide behind the arches, from where they manifest their racial hatred. The victim was a Colombian, Rangers attacker from Scotland, Alfredo Morelos, who was celebrating the equalizer against Heart of Midlothian on October 20. Morelos has already suffered other attacks in Scotland, such as when they removed a banner that said: Morelos your mother is a mattress.
(You may be interested: Vinicius Junior: Xavi Hernández, DT of Barcelona, comes out to support him: “It is inadmissible”)
Very well remembered is the case of Jéfferson Lerma, who when he was playing for Levante in Spain, denounced that the player Iago Aspas, from Celta, yelled at him “black shit”.
In Mexico, the situation is alarming. There the shout “Eeeeh, puto” from the fans towards the rival goalkeepers has become popular, an expression that is considered discriminatory. One victim has been the Colombian goalkeeper Camilo Vargas, who in a recent Atlas match wore a shirt that said “Ehhhh” on the back, accompanied by a silence signal. In Mexico they already take measures, ranging from warnings to the suspension of the game.
In Colombia there is also a record. The most recent was in March of this year, when goalkeeper Miguel Solís, who was making a save for Santa Fe, denounced racist insults from the Millonarios fans. “They were yelling ugly things like monkeys, monkeys, and I think that here in Colombia that can’t happen,” he said..
In 2018, the coach of Once Caldas, Hubert Bodhert, said that the Uruguayan goalkeeper Lucero Álvarez offended his players with discriminatory comments. “Foreigners are not going to come here to mistreat us. We are blacks with a lot of honor”, said the coach.
(Keep reading: The incredible story of Jack Johnson and his furious punches at racism)
In Colombia, the disciplinary code punishes racist acts with between five and ten suspension dates, and prohibits the offender from entering the stadium.
The evil of racism advances and spreads through the stadiums. Every measure is necessary to try to stop this virus that attacks without modesty or scruples. An own goal for current football.
One more
the attacker Marco Perezof golden eaglesaccused his colleague Alexander Mejía, from Unión, of having made a racist expression towards him during the match.
According to Pérez, Mejía called him a slave: “Good evening, regarding what I saw on the pitch and why I came here to the press conference, it’s because I’m a little sad because Mejía calls me a slave, and That’s a word that we can’t use here in Colombia. The truth is I’m very sad, I told the teacher (Lucas González, coach of Águilas) to let me come to the press conference and this can’t stay like that,” he said Pérez, accompanied by his coach and with obvious discomfort.
REGRETABLE: ANOTHER EPISODE OF RACISM IN PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL. After the CONMEBOL match #South American in Argentina, Hugo Rodallega denounced racist acts in the Gymnastics Forest.
🗣️ “BEING CALLED A MONKEY, BLACK… IS A LACK OF RESPECT”
🗣️ “IN BOGOTÁ WE TREAT YOU WELL” pic.twitter.com/rZ7eFIlOnb
– SportsCenter (@SC_ESPN) May 24, 2023
Rodallega in Argentina
the attacker Hugo Rodallegawith tears, was the one who denounced the racist insults in the game against Gymnastics in Argentina. At the end of the game, the experienced cardinal striker said that there were cries of “black” and “mono”.
“We are not improving as humanity. What is happening in the world is a disaster. It is sad to come… I am not saying that we lost because people offend, but the issue of racism is already tiring,” the striker began in his statement.
“That they call you monkey, that they call you black is disrespectful and sad,” added Rodallega.
He said that the screams were especially when there was a fight with the gymnastics players that led to the expulsion of Wilson Morelo.
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PAUL ROMERO
Editor of EL TIEMPO@PabloRomeroET
More news at eltiempo.com
#Racism #harsh #incurable #disease #current #football