Anti-discrimination campaigners have called for significant changes to avoid “another generation” of players, managers and officials not reaching their potential after it emerged that younger fans consider racism much more of a problem in football than older groups.
A survey, conducted by Ipsos in collaboration with i, found almost half of Gen Z and Millennials, ranging from age 16 to 42, believe tackling racism is the most serious challenge facing the game, compared to only a third of Gen X and Baby Boomers, aged 43 to 75.
It is thought that the prevalence of racism on social media involving football and the increasing number of those younger generations spending time on smartphones has contributed to differing views on how well football is dealing with racism.
The results can be revealed as the Premier League has announced that it will “celebrate diversity across the game” by dedicating this weekend and next weekend’s matches to its No Room For Racism campaign.
As part of the campaign, clubs have nominated a “No Room For Racism Icon” “to highlight the contribution of Black, Asian and minority ethnic people in football and showcase the importance of diversity on and off the pitch”.
But Kick it Out’s chief executive Samuel Okafor, when speaking about the results of the survey, says that decisive action needs to be taken.
The new survey reveals there is a groundswell of support for considerable, hard-hitting action to be taken against football fans who make racist comments on social media.
Okafor told i: “Football has been tasked with solving these issues and progress has been painfully slow.
Transparency of workforce data and recruitment practices must come quickly, and intentional targets must be set to try and change the landscape. We don’t want another generation of qualified players, managers, coaches or referees not reaching their full potential.
“The results [of the survey] are not a surprise to us, and they also shine a light on how far English football needs to go to change its culture and representation at a time when campaigns are common but concrete changes to tackle these issues remain elusive.
“At Kick It Out, we received a record 1,332 reports of discrimination last season, with racism reports rising by 47 per cent on the previous season.
“The Ipsos research underlines our findings that online abuse has contributed to these rises, and that a more diverse and younger generation are feeling this abuse more acutely. It’s hugely important that football and social media companies are held to account for these rises, and can demonstrate what they are doing to tackle the issues.”
Around half of fans support clubs being punished for their fans making racist comments online: 54 per cent support large fines, 49 per cent full or partial stadium closures, 47 per cent points deductions or disqualification from cups and 41 per cent in favour of transfer bans or forfeiting matches.
Fifa drew significant criticism after the governing body announced plans for a global rollout of a new plan to tackle racism by having officials and players making an “X” gesture, crossing arms across chest, if they experience or witness racism. Campaigners had wanted the governing body to empower players to leave the field.
There is a contrast in the perception of racism in football between white fans and those from ethnic minority backgrounds, with 53 per cent of fans believing efforts to tackle racism have not gone far enough, compared to only 42 per cent of white supporters.
Almost three-quarters of ethnic minority fans consider racism a “fairly big” or “very big” problem in the game, compared to just over half of white fans.
Meanwhile, less than a quarter of white adults reported that they had heard racist chanting at football matches, compared to almost half of ethnic minority fans surveyed – 43 per cent – saying that they had. The figures were similar for hearing racist comments towards players at games.
And this all may feed into the view of almost half – 48 per cent – of ethnic minority fans feeling pessimistic that within the next five years an England manager will be from a Black, Asian or Mixed Ethnicity background, whereas only a third of white supporters felt the same.
“The reports Kick It Out receives for every incident has increased for the last five seasons, showing that fans are less tolerant of discrimination, and football needs to heed that message,” Okafor said. “The results from this survey underline that call, with more than half of fans from ethnic minorities saying efforts to tackle racism don’t go far enough. We hear that signal loud and clear, but football and social media companies need to listen too.
“That starts with football sharing discrimination data, so we can tackle this issue collectively, it means setting targets for positive actions when incidents occur. While there is always a case for stronger consequences, as the research suggests, we also believe that education amongst fans can impact those around them too, making the game more welcoming for all.”
Furthermore, almost half of UK adults do not believe Asian footballers are represented well – or at all – in the game. The Premier League was forced to launch the South Asian Action Plan in 2022 to deal with the significant lack of British South Asian players in academies.
“We know there are stubborn challenges when it comes to representation as highlighted by the research where fans recognise there is a lack of Asian representation in the game, with managers and referees from ethnic backgrounds being poorly represented,” Okafor said.
“We know that the south Asian community is well represented at grassroots level, but is not translating through to the professional game. There are other issues too including a lack of women coaches, and a lack of diversity in the elite women’s game.”
Artist Kingsley Nebechi has been commissioned to create illustrations of the Premier League’s anti-racism icons. One was also be produced of former Kick It Out founder and chair, Lord Herman Ouseley, who died earlier this month.
Rapper Wretch-32 has also recorded a track for a No Room For Racism video “showcasing how greatness comes from everywhere”, the press release states.
Premier League Chief Executive Richard Masters said: “One of football’s biggest strengths is its ability to bring people from diverse backgrounds together, which has a positive impact on all areas of the game.
“We are proud to celebrate individuals who represent the importance of diversity within football, including trailblazing players and inspirational club employees who set a great example to others day in, day out.
“Through our No Room For Racism Action Plan, we are committed to improving diversity across football and we will continue to work hard to show that any form of discrimination will not be tolerated.”
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