BNP invite is the wrong race card for England 2018

The bright spark who suggested inviting members of the Greater London Assembly to Monday's launch of the 2018 World Cup bid probably thought they were doing England's chances a favour. You can't have too many cheerleaders, they might have reasoned.

Wrong. Among the assembly members that received the embossed invite was BNP councillor Richard Barnbrook, a high-profile member of the far-right party. Barnbrook's invitation represents an early and damaging own-goal for England's campaign and a blow to the FA's laudable work against racism.

The more you consider the incident the less forgivable it seems. Barnbrook represents a party that has a ban on non-white candidates, but he looked on from the VIP seats as Lord Triesman, the FA chairman, praised the cultural diversity England would bring to the World Cup.

In case we didn't get the message, the audience in the Bobby Moore Suite at Wembley had been bolstered by scores of schoolchildren drawn from the numerous communities whose presence in the UK Barnbrook's party so resents.

The FA's commitment to diversity did not extend to inviting Baroness Amos, Hope Powell or John Barnes, the only non-white members of the bid team, to share the platform with Triesman. These omissions would not have mattered half as much had the BNP not got an invite.

Barnes it turns out was unable to attend, but it is worth recalling that the winger's greatest achievement was to reach the pinnacle of the game despite routinely facing racist abuse from the terraces. We can guess how the BNP views his 79 England caps.

Barnbrook's presence at the launch also undermines one of England's unspoken advantages over their main European rivals Spain. The racist abuse of footballers and even motor racing drivers that has occurred in Spain in recent seasons is something the FA had hoped to exploit in its favour, arguing that England equals tolerance. Barnbrook's invite makes that equation harder to prove.

To be fair to the 2018 team they acknowledged their error in inviting Barnbrook as soon as complaints from supporters groups and politicians reached their ears. It should never have come to that however, and the furore serves as an early reminder that the bidding spotlight will illuminate England 2018's flaws just as clearly as its virtues.

This was a self-inflicted wound and a grubby, embarrassing one at that, but the bid will recover. Perhaps more profound will be the impact on the FA's wider work against racism.

The football authorities are quick to take credit for their work in tackling discrimination and there is much to be proud of. The Kick It Out campaign was pioneering and remains the benchmark for programs of its kind, playing a huge role in lowering the tolerance of racist abuse at football grounds and using the game to spread the virtues of tolerance more widely.

For those involved with Kick It Out, including its chairman Lord Ouseley, an FA councillor, Monday's events were deeply dispiriting. The FA, Premier League and Football League are all sincere in their commitment to tackle racism, but Ouseley and fellow travellers from all sectors of the game know that if football is to become truly accessible then it is not enough for the FA to talk the talk. It has to walk the walk too, and on Monday it fell flat on its face.

Telegraph

FA chiefs show BNP candidate red card

County football chiefs have called for an honorary vice-president to be kicked out of the FA after learning he is standing for election as a BNP candidate.

Stan Leese is representing the far-right party in Stoke-on-Trent's Northwood and Birches Head ward in Thursday's polls. Mr Leese, of Woodhead Road, Abbey Hulton, told electors in his campaign leaflets that he has dedicated most of his life to local football, and was recently made a life vice-president of the Staffordshire Football Association in recognition of his efforts.

However, the admission has earned him the red card from the FA's directors, who are outraged at his political stance. They point out that the FA has a strict policy of tackling racism and inequality, and that they are bitterly opposed to the BNP's policies.

Mr Leese's campaign leaflet says: "I have lived in the city all of my life and have been involved with local football since 1946, now becoming a life vice-president for Staffordshire FA."

His letter to electors is attached to a campaign poster warning of the supposed impact of the city's growing Muslim population, and calling for the Shelton mosque development to be stopped.

Staffordshire FA chief executive Brian Adshed said he has now asked Mr Leese to quit or face disciplinary action.

"The chair of the association has spoken to him regarding both his continuing membership of the association and his affiliation to the BNP," he said.

"He has also been written to asking him to withdraw his membership of the association before polling day. Subject to that not being received, he will be dealt with by the board of directors at their next meeting on May 22. Everything about the political party he is standing for is inconsistent with the aims and objectives of the FA. It really does fly in the face of everything we are trying to achieve.

"We operate a policy of inclusivity and equality for all, whatever their race, gender or sexual orientation. I was very disappointed when I saw Mr Leese's leaflet as he has been an FA member for a long time and is more than aware of what we are trying to do."

Mr Leese was unavailable for comment.

The Sentinel

Racist chants at West Ham investigated by police

West Ham United's season took a turn from the shambolic to the shameful on Sunday when large groups of supporters were filmed chanting racist and anti-semitic slogans at half-time of the club's 4-3 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. The Metropolitan Police confirmed that its football unit is investigating a complaint made by the Community Security Trust, an organisation that protects Britain's Jewish community from anti-semitism. Among the chants heard was one stating: "I'd rather be a Paki than a Jew".

Clips of the chants had been posted on the YouTube website by a member going by the username of "cockneymatt88". The trust noted that the number in the username might have been a neo-Nazi reference, the 88 being the eighth letter of the alphabet twice over, standing for "Heil Hitler".

Though the username took down the clips at about 5pm yesterday the Football Association had already forwarded the video to police. The FA will request that West Ham provide all available CCTV footage to investigators, and will push for prosecutions and for football banning orders to be imposed on guilty parties.

There had been a storm of protest from Tottenham fans to their club, who in turn lodged a formal protest with West Ham. "We have contacted West Ham and they are conducting an investigation," said Tottenham, "we are awaiting the outcome of that." West Ham distanced themselves from the actions of a section of their supporters while pointing to their own anti-racist credentials. "West Ham is a leading [anti-racist] campaigner and will not tolerate racist behaviour of any kind," said the club. "We will investigate this matter fully, attempt to identify the perpetrators and take the appropriate action."

The FA's head of stadia, Chris Whalley, will write to the relegation-threatened club today to demand an explanation for the security and stewarding provisions it has in place. The FA will want to know why there was no intervention from stewards to put a stop to the chanting, which took place at half-time when the home side were leading Spurs 2-0.

Piara Powar, director of the Kick It Out anti-racism campaign, said: "There are very, very clear guidelines given to stewards; there is a section on the training programme about how to deal with this sort of incident.

"Either these guys have not been trained in the right way or they have ignored their training and were too frightened to intervene. This had the classic ingredients: a passionate match, a relegation-threatened club against one known as a Jewish club. It's a throwback and it shows we can't be complacent."

Guardian