Players Campaign Says #Enough to Racism

April 26, 2019

Last week, professional footballers in England and Wales coordinated the #Enough campaign to take a stand against the rising number of incidents of racism in sport. Organised by the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA), the protest kicked off with a social media boycott  last Friday.

Over the last few months, both domestically and internationally, there have been a number of high-profile racist incidents directed at players. The boycott acts as a show of unity by the players, and a call for stronger action to be taken by social networks and footballing authorities in response to racist abuse both on and off the pitch.

The boycott is the first step in a longer campaign to tackle racism in football. The PFA will continue to work closely with The FA and government to ensure more is done to tackle racist abuse, while also seeking to put pressure on both FIFA and UEFA through FIFPro.

The campaign seeks to shine a light on the need for social media platforms to take responsibility to address racism received by professional footballers and other users online. The PFA is encouraging all its members to post a #Enough graphic on their social media platforms before they begin a 24-hour boycott of social media.

Simone Pound, Head of Equalities at the PFA, said: “Football has the power to do so much good in the world. We must always try to use the sport’s popularity and influence to make positive change. 

“Over the last few months we have seen a rise in appalling instances of racist abuse at grounds around the world, and on social media. We cannot stand by while too little is done to address this unacceptable behaviour.

Leicester City captain, Wes Morgan said: “While there has been progress in the battle against racism within football, there are still far too many instances of players being abused. I’ve heard it in the stands and I’ve seen it online. We all have.

Arsenal forward, Danielle Carter said: “Football is more popular than it has ever been, but we have a discontented generation of players who won’t stand for racist abuse any longer. Enough is enough.

“We want to see social media companies take proper responsibility for racist abuse on their platforms and we want them to find solutions.”