Epidemic Of Racism In Football

Introduction In this essay, I will be explaining the problem of racism in soccer, known around the world more commonly as football. Racism is a problem that plagues world football to this very day. In such a modernized, culturally-accepting world, many would expect the most globalized sport on the planet to share the same values, but in many instances, it doesn’t.

Classification of Audience

This essay is an outcry to everyone who loves “the beautiful game”. The sport of football should not be tainted by the epidemic of racism. This argument is one that every fan of football should hear; the fans have just as much power as the highest ranking officials in the game. The fans hold the key to spreading the message that racism in still running

Nowadays people are easily able to play in different countries, far away from their homeland. Young South and Central American kids have dreams that they may one play in the extremely prestigious football leagues throughout Europe. This may bring an exciting new flair to these leagues, but it also brings a mixture of culture that is not always accepted by football fans. There are many incidents of racism and xenophobia, even in the modern game, towards players and other fans alike. Typically, the governing bodies of European soccer hand out punishments that are quite lenient for such heinous incidents. These governing bodies should be held accountable for being so lenient in their punishments. A slap on the wrist and a small fine seem to be enough, and the media loses interest in the story soon after. This is a widespread social issue that needs more exposure; there are many ways that racism and xenophobia can be policed. There are two major bodies that govern European soccer: FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) and UEFA (Union of European Football Association), as well as each country’s own football association. These organizations have more than enough power to make serious changes in the way that these incidents are handled. This is an extremely important issue; by showing that racism can be cracked down and removed

Some experts believe that the punishments being handed out by FIFA/UEFA are more than enough to combat these issues. These people claim that incidents of racism and xenophobia are handled well enough to deter people from doing this, but there is evidence to combat this . I believe that this is an issue is a problem of mindset – many fans believe that hooliganism is part of their footballing tradition and actually pride themselves on this, especially in England, where hooliganism ran rampant in the 70s and 80s. This can be compared to the Confederate Flag issue in the United States; many football fans claim that their “heritage” is being infringed upon and protest any punishments handed out by governing bodies. In the United States, many people protested the removal of the Confederate Flag from government buildings, claiming that their “heritage and history” were being infringed upon. In both instances, the parties insisted that they were trying to preserve parts of their history, and that this history defined who they were. In cases such as these, the leniency of the fines isn’t the problem – it’s the mindset of the fans. This can be combatted by organizing awareness campaigns; by condemning these acts by fans and teaching why these actions are wrong, a change could be inspired in football