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Nothing ever happens, nothing happens at all. The world game needs a moral backbone

The lawyer and the footballer are out of their depth. Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini are treading water while the world game swirls around them.

Bigotry and corruption consume their tooth-decayed organisations and both are exposed as weak and ineffectual.

And that's even before considering the vacuum of leadership at our own Football Association. 

England has been challenged by an act of antiestablishment fascist defiance in a Premier League fixture. 

Nicolas Anelka gave a quenelle salute, reviled by most French society, when scoring for West Bromwich Albion on the 28th December. Three weeks into the New Year and the FA finally acted on what is a very serious transgression committed by Anelka.

Copycat quenelle's have been performed at Jewish holy places, next to unknowing victims and even by Samir Nasri at Manchester City's training ground entrance.

Weak Albion insisted Anelka should play until the FA sanction him, knowing full well he'd be charged and punished, because in their words it caused offence only in "some quarters".

Imagine if one these salutes were performed at Churchill's statue or Big Ben? Anelka and Nasri's vile action are a clear challenge to British society too and it seems, everyone with the power to do something would rather look the other way.

"Nothing ever happens, nothing happens at all. They'll burn down the synagogues at 6 o'clock and we'll all go along like before". 

Football has a leadership crisis and the search for strong, politically-savvy, incorruptible heavyweights ready to confront the problems should begin now.

FIFA is almost beyond redemption. The discredited Executive Committee sold its soul to a medieval political ideology and Russian gangsters. And the only guarantee about Brazil's World Cup is most of the football will be crap.

But UEFA has a realistic chance of doing something constructive, positive and enlightened.

The quality of football in the Champions League elevates UEFA not just to the top of world football but to represent a constituency of interest and people almost to a level of church or nation and a mandate to combat racism - the biggest challenge to football since hooliganism in the 80’s.

Every year persistent racism, mostly but not exclusively from the east, diminishes world football’s outstanding competition. Its destructive power is a stain on the continent and its nationhood and if UEFA refuses to get tough with the imbeciles they will end up ruining it for the rest of us.

There are many examples but here are two illustrations of how useless UEFA are.

In March last year Manchester City players Mario Balotelli and Yaya Toure were subjected to monkey  chants during a game at Porto.

The next month City were ‘up to 60 seconds’ late returning to the pitch during half time of the game at Sporting Lisbon.

UEFA fined City more - 50% more - than Porto.

In October 2012 England Under 21’s played a European championship qualifier in Serbia.

England’s black players were racially abused THROUGHOUT the game. At the final whistle fans invaded the pitch and scuffles broke out.

Serbia are serial offenders yet the Serbian FA escaped with a £65,000 fine. Four players and two coaching staff were suspended and ordered Serbia U21’s to play their next match behind closed doors. UEFA also suspended three black England players.

So much for UEFA’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy towards racism.

Eight clubs have been ordered to play games in closed or partially closed stadiums because of racist chanting in the first four months of THIS SEASON.

The problem is growing and UEFA’s refusal to ban clubs and countries from tournaments sends the wrong message.

UEFA argue the punishments are line with their rule book. Well, it’s your organisation why not introduce different rules?

And it is no use looking to the President for leadership. Michel Platini was one of those on FIFA’s Executive Committee who voted for a summer World Cup in Qatar because France’s President at the time, Nicolas Sarkozy, told him to.

The President of UEFA ignored what was best for football and voted for Qatar because it was in the best interests of France and Paris St Germain who were subsequently bought by Qatar.

Is it co-incidence that Platini’s lawyer son, Laurent,  then landed a highly paid job with Qatari Sports Investments?

Does Michel Platini strike you as the strong, politically-savvy, incorruptible heavyweight we need to take on the cancer of racism?

Do you feel safe in the hands of football's administrators when dumb players show such defiance? 

Me neither.

Black players proclaim, "enough is enough"

Jamie Lawrence during his days at Bradford City

Just before EURO 2012, when UEFA shrugged away Chris Rogers' Panorama report on racism in the crowd in Poland and Ukraine's leagues, I wrote: "If governing bodies won't stand up for their black players, perhaps black players might do it for themselves."

I had a phone call from a friend in football, who confirmed that a lobby of players in the English game were in ongoing dialogue with the PFA chairman, Gordon Taylor.

Kick It Out wasn't doing anywhere near enough to rid football of racism, did little to help and defend Anton Ferdinand through the John Terry trial - and amounted to mere box-ticking, he said.

So desperate did they feel about the many acts of racism alleged to exist throughout the game, a boycott of Kick It Out was imminent - even the threat of a breakaway black players union.

Jamie Lawrence, formerly of Bradford and Leicester, broke ranks to give me an exclusive interview which I aired on talkSPORT Extra Time.


Kick It Out needs a Kick Up The Backside

"I think the boys have had enough - and they're not willing to take it anymore", said 42-year-old Lawrence, who still plys his trade with non-league Cobham.

“I think some of the boys will boycott the initiative [by refusing to wear the Kick It Out t-shirts). They [the PFA] have got a chance now to send out a strong message to start backing the players and, if that doesn’t happen, I think we’ll move away from them.

“The FA banned [Luis] Suarez for eight games and gave him a £40,000 fine. Terry got eight games and a £220,000 fine. I don’t know what the difference is between the two. £220,000 is not a lot of money for Terry. It’s about ten days’ wages. Four games is ridiculous.

“Jonjo Shelvey made a tackle in a massive game against Man United and got three games [suspension]. How does John Terry get only one more game than that for racism?”

The PFA should bring pressure to bear on the Football Association. As top-to-bottom custodians of the English game, they can make the difference by stepping up anti-racism campaigns.

listen to ‘Black players proclaim 'enough is enough'’ on Audioboo


There's no point in putting up a spokesman to talk up the initiatives they're involved in - because they're not nearly enough and appear to be a further cause for division.

It'd be a very bad day if the threat of a black players union was ever realised - not least because the sooner we all realise this is a problem for everyone - irrespective of skin colour, the more united we will be.

EURO 2012 racism row to be swept under the carpet



Alone: token support from football

It's a shocking state of affairs that two of our England squad should have families who fear for their safety by going to EURO 2012.

Both Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's brothers and parents have cancelled their trips to Poland and the Ukraine citing "possible racist attack".



But the FA, who are supposed to "Say No To Racism" and seek to "Kick It Out" are impotent to do anything about it. They're hamstrung. Why? because John Terry's in the England squad.

The former captain's awaiting trial for allegedly racially abusing Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League game at Queen's Park Rangers last October and now won't take place until after  EURO 2012. District judge Howard Ribble ordered that Terry should only stand trial from July 9th because a number of Chelsea players won't be available to appear as witnesses until the end of the tournament. And another former England defender, Sol Campbell's urging fans not to even bother going to Europe's festival of international football, lest "they might return in a coffin". Stay at home is the former Tottenham and Arsenal man's advice.



Racism is rife in Ukrainian stadia and unsegregated attacks on opposition fans is commonplace.

By claiming Terry's selection was based on a footballing decision only, the Chelsea skipper can come along for the ride and escape punishment until it's safe to venture out in July, a full six weeks before the start of next season.

These FA, FIFA and UEFA initiatives are mere empty husks when push comes to shove. Nothing ever comes in the way of a tournament, even issues of basic morality - and sadly, Walcott and Oxlade-Chamberlain will have to show extra professionalism to get on with their game.

It's mere box-ticking by these governing bodies to show they do act against the scourge of racism, but if they really meant it, the FA would've dropped Terry, threatened to boycott EURO 2012 alongside other leading nations - and got the tournament moved to a country where people can live and work decently.

Sol speaks out against Ukrainian racism.

That Ukraine and Poland are racist societies is no surprise to me. Their sleepy evil backwaters for a reason. It's because throughout the last 150 years, they have expelled, tortured and murdered people who weren't indigenous. My own grandfather was born in the Ukraine and was forced to leave as a child with his family. The spotlight has fallen on Poland and Ukraine only because UEFA decided to spread their western European football message to a part of the third world on our doorstep.

If governing bodies won't stand up for their black players, perhaps black players might do it for themselves.