Diversity in Football
Addressing the lack of tolerance in the beautiful game
There is a blight on the footballing landscape. It is not trivial matters like VAR or FFP, but a lack of diversity, or a lack of tolerance to minority groups, in the sport. This article has been one I have pondered for a long time, but my inspiration behind it has finally taken shape and with the current debates on the “kneel” in the national team, this is the perfect moment to face head on the game’s archaic handling of issues such as race and sexuality.
Before I get to the main focus of race, I would like to look at other groups which are left by the wayside. One of these would be the woman’s game, which has taken some major strides in the last decade. Though things such as higher viewing figures and more coverage of fixtures has certainly improved its standing, it is still far behind the men’s game in regards to sponsorships, broadcasting and public opinion. Hopefully, following the success of international women’s competitions and with several teams matching the pay of both sexes, the disparity between the two games will grow lesser and lesser.
A second area of concern is the potential homophobic nature of the footballing matchday. It is common to hear racist chants and language used at a ground, despite the bans imposed for their use, but there is also a lot of language used at a game which is offensive to LGBTQ+ people. There are the usual suspects, such as the defamatory “f****t”, as well as the nickname of Chelsea fans given by rival supports of “rent boys”. The FA may use the rainbow laces campaign to suggest they are tackling these issues, and it may be true to an extent, but there is clearly a fear of coming out, with no players currently in the league openly homosexual. More must be done to make players feel more comfortable being who they are.
Now, onto the main issue. Racism has been rife in football for decades, and has reflected society’s mindset for a long time. When football began to become more mainstream and family-orientated in the 1990s, more was done to make the sport more tolerant and modern. Though, as we all know, racism is still present in England today, and this affects football. There are plenty of foreign players in the league, many of them a minority, but there is still some outdated attitudes towards these people.
A lot of it could be classed as being unintended or unconscious racism. A study by RunRepeat found that on analysis of English commentary, caucasian players tended to be described by their intellectual skill, whereas non-white players were praised for their physical skills, such as speed or strength. Commentators are likely doing this without knowing, and in some instances a black player is likely to be good at physical traits and a white player is likely to be a clever player but it is still a bad trend for impressionable children watching it on television and is not always accurate. To give an example from the top of my head, Paul Pogba is an exceptionally clever black player, who isn’t the quickest or strongest, and Shane Long is a very fast white player who isn’t the most inventive. To describe players on traits based on their skin colour is absurd.
Similar to my earlier point, racism is a major concern at grounds and on social media too. The past few years have saw bananas being thrown, banners being unfolded and chants being sung, and some countries are a lot worse at it than others, typically Eastern European nations who lack a diverse population. This intolerance has now moved onto social media too, with many players being racially targeted on applications like Twitter and Instagram for poor performances. However, neither issue is being addressed very well by social media sites and the governing bodies of football. It gives a good idea of where their priorities are that they come up with action immediately for stopping the ESL which would affect their money, but still do little to stop hate speech in the sport.
Finally, my inspiration for the article — the “kneeling” debate. What began with former NFL player Colin Kaepernick in 2016 spread to the Premier League in 2020 after the COVID hiatus following the death of US citizen George Floyd by a negligent police officer. Players began to kneel before the game started to show their stance on the issue. It began to become a major talking point in the UK, especially when some fans returned to stadiums and began to boo players taking part in the act. But why are they booing?
The typical reasoning given is that the kneel is the symbol chosen by Black Lives Matter, a US political organisation which gained significant traction following Floyd’s death. Therefore, people argue it is a political symbol, which is not allowed under SGB regulations, and they point to FIFA’s former ban on the poppy for Rememberance Sunday on the England shirts as an example. Those up in arms, who seem to be okay with plastering the English flag everywhere and singing the national anthem (which are definitely not political in nature), also revel in telling people Floyd was a former convict who was violent and dangerous. This, though, forgets the fact that even if that was the case, it does not excuse somebody being murdered by those meant to protect us.
One could argue that the symbol may be “for show”, as clearly the FA are not actually stopping racism effectively, and players like Wilfred Zaha has voiced this opinion. However, players should feel free to kneel if they believe in its message, and not face the backlash of bigoted fans who would cheer for the same players if they helped their team win.
