Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana has described a video posted on social media by his club teammate Enzo Fernandez as “uninhibited racism”.
Following Argentina’s Copa America final win over Colombia, Fernandez posted a video on social media showing Argentina players appearing to sing about French players with African heritage.
Chelsea teammate and France defender Fofana posted the video to his social media accounts on Tuesday, describing it as “uninhibited racism”.
Fofana, who has family ties to Ivory Coast, is among several black French players in the Chelsea first-team squad.
The same chants — by some Argentina fans — emerged before France and Argentina met in the World Cup final two years ago and Argentina won.
The French soccer federation has pledged to file a complaint with FIFA over “racist and discriminatory remarks” by Argentina players.
“Given the seriousness of these shocking remarks, which are contrary to the values of sport and human rights, the FFF (French Football Federation) president has decided to contact its Argentinian counterpart and FIFA directly to file a legal complaint for racist and discriminatory remarks,” the FFF said in a statement on Tuesday.
It added: “The president of the French Football Federation, Philippe Diallo, condemns in the strongest terms the unacceptable racist and discriminatory remarks made against the players of the France team as part of a song sung by players and supporters of the Argentina team.”
Diallo is a member of the executive committee of European soccer body UEFA, with a growing reputation in the game’s politics.
FIFA could not immediately confirm on Tuesday if the French complaint had been filed.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has said soccer and its 211 national federations must have a zero tolerance approach to racism. In May he committed to relaunching a task force to monitor incidents.
Reuters/AP
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Publish date : 2024-07-16 20:56:36
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