England captain John Terry accused of racism

This is supposed to be the time of the year when the football family in the UK stands together and embrace Kick It Out's "One Game, One Community".

But it is ironic that as football clubs across the country send out a message to celebrate diversity and clamp down on discrimination in the beautiful game, there are allegations of racism involving professional footballers. Chelsea and England captain John Terry was accused of racially abusing QPR defender Anton Ferdinand on Sunday, just a week after Liverpool striker Luis Suarez was accused of the same thing by Manchester United’s Patrice Evra.

Video footage circulated on the internet appears to show Terry directing a racist comment towards Ferdinand. But Terry came out fighting, releasing a statement where he mentioned that he was telling Ferdinand he had not used a racist term against him. The England skipper claims he was responding to what he thought were accusations from the centre-back. But after an internal inquiry, QPR have asked the Football Association to investigate the matter.

Terry, meanwhile has received the support of Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas, who said,

“We fully back John, a player who represents this country to the highest level. He is confident about it – he spoke to Anton after the game and, for us it’s a great misunderstanding. End of story. Players respect each other. It's just a misunderstanding and something blown out of all proportion. People who represent this country should have better and fuller support."

It was always expected that Terry would get the backing of his club but for his manager to say those who represent their country “deserve better and fuller support” is not something that can be fully supported. Every individual should be treated equally in the eyes of the law and the idea that the allegations shouldn’t be investigated or Terry being questioned for his actions.

The matter is now a case for the footballing authorities and also could become a police matter should Hammersmith and Fulham officers deem it a case worth investigating following their assessment.

Football in this country has worked hard to clean up its act and make sure we don’t see scenes from the past when Black players were subjected to horrific racist abuse from the stands as well as being pelted with objects including bananas. But incidents such as those involving Terry and Suarez suggest that football isn’t immune to being tainted.

But it was shocking to read Steve Doughty’s column in the Daily Mail this week where he seems to believe that there are worse things to complain about than racism and his message to players such as Evra and Ferdinand that in this instance they should “just put up with it and get on with the game.”

Surely Mr Doughty is conscious of the message such statements send out. It seems as though he is condoning such behaviour and suggests those who are fighting to eradicate racism and other forms of discrimination from football and indeed society are wasting their time and should just accept it.

On the contrary, the best way to tackle these issues is not to ignore them but take action, to send a message that racism is not acceptable and those found guilty of it should be punished.

As Lord Herman Ouseley, Chair of Kick It Out, stated, the two high-profile incidents of alleged racist abuse is worrying and potentially very damaging.

“What happens at the top end of the game has an impact at grass roots level and at parks pitches across the country.”

Professional football should be subject to the same standards of a normal work place. If a person is found guilty of racist behaviour, they are dealt with appropriately, perhaps even resulting in being sacked. Therefore, I believe these same standards should apply to football. If John Terry or Luis Suarez are found guilty of racial abuse, then their status as football players shouldn’t matter. They should be punished accordingly, even if it means a ban for life.

Arita Pecaka

Picture: Chelsea and England captain John Terry