Three Black Soccer Players Are Facing Rist AbusAft Engnds Eu

Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Expand/collapse submenu for Culture

Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows

Three Black Soccer Players Are Facing Racist Abuse After Englands Euro 2020 Defeat

As soon as Italy clinched its win over England in the Euro 2020 soccer championship, racist comments started pouring in blaming three Black players for the loss.

Three Black Soccer Players Are Facing Racist Abuse After Englands Euro 2020 Defeat

Englands players look on during the shootout against Italy in the UEFA Euro 2020 final. Three Black players have faced racist abuse after Englands loss.Laurence Griffiths/Getty Imageshide caption

Englands players look on during the shootout against Italy in the UEFA Euro 2020 final. Three Black players have faced racist abuse after Englands loss.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Prince William are denouncing the racist harassment of Black players for Englands national soccer team following the teams loss Sunday in the Euro 2020 championship.

Englands highest-profile soccer organizations are now urging consequences for the torrent of harassment, which began almost instantly after Englands loss to Italy, 3-2 on penalty kicks. The game marked Englands first international finals appearance in more than 50 years.

The abuse has been aimed at the three English players who missed their penalty kicks. All three Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka are Black.

Prince William, who serves as president of Englands Football Association, wrote on Twitter that he was sickened by the racist abuse aimed at the three Black players. It must stop now and all those involved should be held accountable, he said.

This England team deserve to be lauded as heroes, not racially abused on social media.

Those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves.

In astatement released Monday, the Football Association, soccers governing body in England, urged the British government to take action on legislation to criminalize online harassment and called on social media companies to do more to remove abusive users.

We strongly condemn all forms of discrimination and are appalled by the online racism that has been aimed at some of our England players on social media, the statement read. We could not be clearer that anyone behind such disgusting behaviour is not welcome in following the team.

Londons Metropolitan Policeannounced it will investigatethe abuse.

When you abuse any of our players, you abuse all of us. Racist abuse causes trauma. It will impact the targeted players, their teammates, and we know it will also affect their peers,said the Professional Footballers Association, the players union.

Harassment and racist comments began to flood the social media accounts of the three players as soon as the game was over. A mural in the city of Manchester, England, depicting Rashford, celebrating his charitable work, was defaced in a way police have called racially aggravated.

People place supportive messages over the defaced mural of Marcus Rashford, the 23-year-old English soccer star who has faced racist harassment after missing a penalty kick in Englands loss to Italy in the Euro finals.Christopher Furlong/Getty Imageshide caption

People place supportive messages over the defaced mural of Marcus Rashford, the 23-year-old English soccer star who has faced racist harassment after missing a penalty kick in Englands loss to Italy in the Euro finals.

Gareth Southgate, the coach of Englands national team, called the harassment unforgivable.

Its just not what we stand for, Southgate said at a news conference Monday, praising the play of Rashford, Sancho and Saka. We heal together as a team now, and were there for them, and I know that 99% of the public will be as well, because they will appreciate how well they played.

In the penalty shootout, England made its first two shots, taken by Harry Kane and Harry Maguire, who are both white.

Then Rashford and Sancho who had subbed into the game near the end of extra time specifically so they could participate in a shootout missed, with Rashfords kick bouncing off the post and Sanchos saved by Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.

A pair of saves by Englands goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford, had England clinging to a chance for victory, so long as the 19-year-old Arsenal star Saka could sink the crucial fifth shot.

But Sakas attempt, too, was saved by Donnarumma, sending the Italians into a frenzied celebration as Englands players crumpled, heads in hands.

None of the three players affected has spoken publicly since the game.

Three lads who were brilliant all summer had the courage to step up & take a pen when the stakes were high, said Kane, calling the abuse vilein a tweet Monday. If you abuse anyone on social media youre not an @England fan and we dont want you.

I am sickened by the racist abuse aimed at England players after last nights match.

It is totally unacceptable that players have to endure this abhorrent behaviour.

It must stop now and all those involved should be held accountable. W

English players have long faced racism, and many have spoken out about the issue in recent years, including Rashford, who this year called the racist abuse he receives from soccer fanshumanity and social media at its worst.

At this years Euro tournament, Englands team took a knee before games in a demonstration against racial inequality, to the jeering of some fans.

Hate is a strong word. But the racist relying on black English footballers to bring them glory as if they were their servants, then turning on them as soon as they fell short of their dreams, have my deepest contempt, wrote Musa Okwonga, an English soccer writer,on Twitter after the gameas the harassment began.