Racism in general, is a very prevalent issue currently, with Black Lives Matter movements and protests occurring all across the globe. In sport however, it is more silent and unheard of, despite the fact that it is common and many players have talked about their experiences with it.
Famous figures such as the late Hall of Fame basketballer, Kobe Bryant, have spoken about the need for people to be educated on the topic. He said that racism had ‘ been part of our culture for a while’ and ‘education is always the most important thing.’
These reports of race-related incidents in football have been steadily increasing, such as Premier League winner Raheem Sterling experiencing it in a Premier League matches and saying that racism is ‘the only disease right now’, but now the FA (Football Association) and Kick it Out (an organisation that works with racism in football) have been taking steps to investigate them and solve this terrible problem. These incidents really should not be happening but steps are now being taken to prevent and resolve them. Officials from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport said racism “has no place in football or society.” Although, these events have happened the football as well as the sports community in general are working extremely hard to put an end to it.
Progress is being made and steps are being highlighted in the fight against racism in sports, and hopefully, this problem will be extinguished.
