Football Authorities unite to promote inclusivity in football and kick discrimination out of the game. Photo Credit: The FA
We all know that football is an emotional game. That’s why we all love it so much. We’ve all experienced a matchday buzz and the hype that comes with it. Win, lose or draw, the emotions of the game get to everybody and everyone expresses this differently. But we must all show our pride and passion in the right way. For too long, we’ve seen unacceptable behaviour on the pitch and in the side-lines and stands, whether that be offensive chants, abuse or dangerous behaviour. There’s no room for this in the game we love, so we must make sure that this season is different.
This is why the English Football Association are introducing a series of measures to eliminate any unacceptable behaviour. From the beginning of this season, we’ll see stronger measures for players, managers, coaches, support staff and club officials all put in place to protect the game we all love.
Football should be a safe and enjoyable experience for all.
The FA, @premierleague and @EFL are introducing measures to help improve the behaviour of players, managers and coaches across the game, and address the issue of football tragedy abuse.#LoveFootball #ProtectTheGame
— The FA (@FA) July 31, 2023
The first of these regulations are directed at the players themselves. Too many times we have seen referees swarmed by players when delivering a decision, which can be incredibly intimidating and off-putting for somebody who is just trying to do their job. The new policies state that if a referee does become surrounded by a team, at least one team member will receive a card. There will also be increased financial penalties for players who invade a referee’s personal space, hoping to deter players from such behaviour and make them think above their own emotions.
Club captains will take on a larger role too, as they are now deemed more responsible in ensuring their teammates are playing fairly and respecting the match officials. They should set the example for the rest of the team, especially younger players who will be learning from them in every match. Interestingly, academy players will also be more educated on officiating, being set to take referee courses. This should give them more insight and empathy into the role and difficult decisions faced by officials, meaning them might think before they act on the pitch.
Match officials will be more empowered to take robust action when a player falls below the expected standard of behaviour, and with the improved behaviour of teams, should feel more confident in their decisions. This will be helped by the continued trialling of bodycams for referees into the 23/24 season. Such measures are not only for the top tiers of football but extend to grassroots level too, with points deductions for teams where players or coaches commit repeated serious misconduct.
Equally as in need of a reformation in football is the behaviour of fans. For too long, football has been subject to an array of serious fan offences with many intended to discriminate. The new measures will focus on chanting, gesturing and displaying offensive messages which not only affect the players but cause significant distress to other fans too.
Sadly, we’ve become accustomed to hearing of racist, homophobic, sexist and other discriminatory chants in football. A prevalent example of such behaviour in football is tragedy chanting: singing deeply offensive songs about traumatic or fatal incidents involving players or supporters. For instance, chants about the Hillsborough disaster is something Liverpool supporters repeatedly face at games which causes significant distress to all fans with a proportion of those directly affected by the disaster.
This was reiterated by FA Vice Chair and Chair of the National League Jack Pearce, who said:
“It is vital that football comes together and acts now, to reset the culture within our game. Unfortunately, the game has normalised unacceptable behaviour on and off the pitch in recent seasons and the message is clear; we will not allow this to continue.
Thankfully, the FA’s new procedures see the initiative ‘Love Football Protect The Game’ launched out, which aims to educate football fans about the devastating effects of tragedy chanting, whether this be delivered in stadiums, classrooms or online. The aim here is to prevent such behaviour in the first place rather than punishing it when it occurs, by teaching the upcoming fans of the game exactly why it will not be tolerated.
It should be said that such serious fan offences do predominantly occur within men’s football matches. The differences in culture means women’s football has a more inclusive and family-friendly atmosphere, where these incidents are less common. However, discrimination happens throughout the game and so any fans who commit such serious offences will now face stadium bans and criminal prosecution. Equally as important as any new policy however, is that fans themselves must self-police and hold each other accountable for their behaviour, kicking discrimination out of the game once and for all.
As well as using punishments to deter fans from serious offences, the new measures will also see ways of rehabilitating supporters who have already engaged in such behaviours. This is known as the Restorative Justice Pilot Scheme, which aims to educate young people who have engaged in negative matchday behaviours, by showing them the impact of their actions on others. The scheme is still in its development phase and is being trialled at ten clubs across the Premier League, Championship, League One and League Two.
The Kick It Out campaign is also helping to tackle discrimination in football, working alongside the FA in the National League and at grassroots level. Founded by anti-racism worker and former football Troy Townsend, the organisation aims to celebrate the diversity in football and support everyone from underrepresented and minority communities to thrive in the game. They encourage everyone to play a role in kicking discrimination out of sport and educate the world of football, from grassroots to academies to the top clubs of English football.
Kick It Out increases the awareness and knowledge of how to report serious incidents in football, making sure that they don’t go unchallenged. Through their very straightforward website, they’ve made the reporting processes clearer and more accessible to everybody involved in the game. They also tackle problem areas in football where serious incidents are the most prevalent.
In addition to working with fantastic organisations such as Kick It Out to improve player and supporter behaviour, the FA has also pledged to encourage positive spectatorship. A great example of this is the first national silent support weekend, which was held in November 2022. To help promote good behaviour on the touchlines in grassroots football, spectators and coaches were encouraged to only applaud positive play from both teams. This would help to reduce pressure and confusion on players especially from parents, helping them to find their own voice, listen to themselves, and develop their game.
Many female footballers have spoken about the impact of parents when playing in a boys’ team, suggesting it was parents as opposed to other players who found it uncomfortable to be playing against a girl. Hopefully, the FA supporting such events like the Silent Support Weekend will have a knock-on effect and help more girls to more feel welcomed into the game.
Football has the power to unite people from all walks of life in a way that nothing else can. Hopefully, we’ll be able to see this more next season, with the FA’s new policies helping people to show their pride and passion in the right way. Regardless of whether you’re a player or supporter, we can all do our part to make the game we love inclusive and enjoyable for all.
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