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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Politics
Ben Glaze

Scrap fines for teams who walk off pitch if players are racially abused MPs urge

Football chiefs should scrap rules which mean teams face fines for walking off the pitch if their players are racially abused, MPs heard.

Sports Minister Mims Davies called on the FA to axe the regime of punishment for sides abandoning games if players are targeted.

Racism at matches was thrown back into the spotlight after England stars Danny Rose, 28, Raheem Sterling, 24, and Callum Hudson-Odoi, 18, were targeted by fans from the stands during their side’s 5-1 victory over Montenegro last month.

The Mirror launched a four-point plan to tackle hatred in the wake of the ugly scenes - and Ms Davies urged MPs to back a fresh crackdown on racism in soccer.

“Football cannot be used as a cloak for racism and intolerance and this is a sign that players have had enough, fans have had enough, and this Government has had enough, so stop it,” she told the Commons.

“We simply cannot have millions of people, in particular our young people tuning in, or witnessing first hand, the type of vile abuse that has been apparent of late.”

It came after James Kinsey, manager of non-league Wythenshawe Town, was fined and suspended after taking his players off the pitch in protest at an alleged racist comment from a linesman.

The game was abandoned after comments allegedly made to a player in January.

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Backing teams who leave the field if they hear racist chanting, Ms Davies added: “It cannot be right for clubs to be fined for players taking action and walking off the pitch if they are receiving racist abuse.

“It is vital that players are supported.

“This fine sends out the wrong signal. The FA must review whether their rules and the guidance they give to clubs is effective in these situations.”

Delivering a statement on discrimination in football, she vowed to “squash and quash this disturbing, ugly, recent trend in racism across our beautiful game”.

While the vast majority of fans are a credit to the sport, “sadly it is being used by certain groups and individuals to spread hate”, she warned.

She hit out at “appalling scenes of racism” the same week the Premier League’s “no room for racism” campaign was launched.

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Labour ’s deputy leader Tom Watson, the party’s Shadow Culture Secretary, said players “should never be punished for walking off the pitch after receiving racist abuse”.

He feared far right extremists were “attempting to infiltrate football again”.

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