Celebrity Gogglebox viewers are praising Mo Gilligan for his perfect summary of the racism aimed at England’s Black footballers.
The 33-year-old comedian appeared on the Channel 4 entertainment series alongside fellow stand-up star Babatunde Aleshe on Friday night (16 July).
The pair were shown watching news reports about the torrent of racist abuse against Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka after they missed their penalties against Italy in the Euro 2020 final last Sunday (11 July).
“It’s that classic thing of, like, when you’re doing well, you’re English. If you’re not doing well, you’re Black,” Gilligan said.
“It is just a game, and the fact that some people are going to take this to an extent that they need to then hurl racist abuse at players – you have to be ashamed of yourself. You really do.”
Gilligan was applauded for his words, with viewers branding them “wise”.
One viewer wrote: “The sadness in @MoTheComedian’s voice on #CelebrityGogglebox killed me,” with another adding: “@MoTheComedian nailing it there.”
On Friday, Saka responded to the racist abuse he suffered following the match, writing in a statement: “There is no place for racism or hate of any kind in football or in any area of society and to the majority of people coming together to call out the people sending these messages, by taking action and reporting these comments to the police and by driving out the hate by being kind to one another, we will win.”
So far, five people have so far been arrested in connection with the online abuse.
The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) has issued a warning to those who posted hateful material, stating: “We will track you down.”
