After several high-profile players raised concerns regarding racist abuse they suffered at the hands of fans, on May 16, FIFA strongly urged all 211 national federations to both mandate racism and racist gestures as penalties and adopt a standard gesture for communicating that this violation had occurred either in the stands or on the field of play.
As ESPN reported, FIFA President Gianni Infantino pledged to make a proposal after consulting with Brazilian superstar Vinicius Junior, who plays for Real Madrid and had voiced concern about facing racist taunts from fans in Spain. In a letter addressed to its member federations, FIFA called for unity. “The time has come for football to unite to unequivocally commit as a global community to address the issue of racism in the game.” The letter also wanted a panel composed of players who would “monitor and advise on the implementation of these actions around the world.”
Although the gesture from FIFA has been well-received, some say it lacks specificity. As The Athletic reported, Tony Burnett, the chief executive of an anti-discrimination charity, Kick It Out, said in a letter critical of the proposals that although FIFA’s intentions appear to be noble, they lack direction. “FIFA’s intentions to take a stand against racism appear to be genuine, but lack detail and in some cases fail to address ongoing concerns,” Burnet wrote.
Burnett’s letter continued, “Kick It Out is surprised that after consulting players, the three-step protocol is set to continue. It has failed to protect players for years, and rather than introducing new hand gestures, FIFA should focus on empowering players and their management to leave the pitch when they feel it’s appropriate. Referees also need better education.”
The letter concludes, “While players offer a genuine insight into the
effects of racism, asking them to come up with solutions to tackle this issue is unfair. Many have called for more to be done, but they should not bear the responsibility for the problem. That is on those who run the game, who have a duty to protect players and need to ensure they are transparent about their actions.”Infantino also is responsible for disbanding the FIFA Anti-Racism Task Force in 2016 ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia after claiming that it had “completely fulfilled its temporary mission,” which will likely remain a point of contention for some.
In 2022, a study uncovered that 55% of players involved in both the Euro 2020 and AFCON finals were subject to racist abuse, with Black players who missed penalties in a finals match between England and Italy subjected to the most racist abuse.
Jude Bellingham, another of
Real Madrid’s star players, told CNN on April 22 that he wanted to see more severe punishment for those who direct racist abuse at players. Although Bellingham was speaking out on behalf of his teammate, he has also been vocal about the issue during his relatively brief career. In 2022, he questioned if FIFA’s executives actually cared about the racist abuses directed at the sport’s Black players.He told CNN in April, “I do think there’s got to be more extreme consequences.” Bellingham added, “I think that’s the best way to try and stop people from doing it in the future. What would be interesting is having the players involved. The
players are the ones who are having to experience it, not these people in charge of the game. So if they really want to know what they think is fair or if they are confused, there are players all over Spain and all over the world that they can speak to, and I’ll tell them to take advantage of that.”Bellingham continued, “We can all say that we want to do things or say it should change, but I think we can all come together, regardless of what color you are, to help get rid of it because we’re all on the same team at the end of the day and we all think it’s disgusting. It shouldn’t be happening. So yeah, I look forward to seeing how the people in charge incorporate the players into the process of preventing it in the future.”
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