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FIFA and UEFA finally show racists warning light (02.12.2005)
By Trevor Huggins
LONDON - UEFA and FIFA have finally decided to wield the biggest weapons in their disciplinary armoury by threatening to dock points and bounce clubs out of competitions for persistent racism.
Most fans would agree that the sooner they use them, the better.
Football authorities do a laudable job in holding conferences, supporting anti-racist groups such as Football Against Racism in Europe and exercising their right to close parts of a stadium in European matches following acts of abuse.
However, the talking has clearly failed to get the message across in many countries, including two of the most important and powerful: Italy and Spain.
The issue in Serie A was brought into sharp focus on Sunday by the sight of Messina`s Ivory Coast defender Zoro picking up the ball and starting to walk off the pitch with it after constant abuse by visiting Inter Milan fans.
Two black Inter players, Brazilian forward Adriano and Nigerian striker Obafemi Martins, were among those who rallied around Zoro and persuaded him to continue.
"It has happened many times, always, wherever I go. But today I couldn`t put up with it," Zoro said.
CONDEMNED ABUSE
Naturally enough, Inter officials condemned the abuse, while Messina are giving Zoro their full support - with club president Pietro Franza wanting him to be made captain for this weekend`s game at Treviso.
But just three days later, Inter fans were chanting racist abuse in Zoro`s name in their team`s midweek Italian Cup tie at Parma.
Part of the problem facing anti-racist campaigners in the self-styled "Beautiful Country" is that many Italian club directors are very wary of their own fans.
Former Lazio owner Sergio Cragnotti, who was the scourge of the club`s Ultras when he boycotted league games in protest at abuse and arranged friendlies with black and Jewish teams, was a very rare example of a powerful man tackling the problem head-on.
Spain has also found itself in the dock.
The resurgence of racist abuse cast a shadow over last season, with five clubs receiving fines, albeit paltry ones, for racist behaviour by their fans.
However, the lowest depths were plumbed in Spain`s friendly in Madrid against England, when men, women and children joined in the abuse of visiting black players.
Spain coach Luis Aragones caused an international outcry a month before the game when he described France striker Thierry Henry to his Spanish club team mate Jose Antonio Reyes as "that black shit." Aragones was fined 3,000 euros for the remark.
MONKEY CHANTS
The Liga got off to a depressingly familiar start this season with fines for Malaga in September and Getafe in
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November,the latter after Barcelona`s Cameroon striker Samuel Eto`o was taunted with monkey chants.
That match was stopped and loudspeaker announcements called for the noises to end and the electronic scoreboard to send an anti-racism message - for which Eto`o thanked the club.
He added: "I hope that other stadiums will take note of what they did."
There were no half-measures in Brazil earlier this year, when police arrested an Argentine player on the pitch for allegedly insulting an opponent during a Libertadores Cup tie.
Leandro Desabato of Argentine club Quilmes, who denied the charge, spent 40 hours in custody before being bailed.
Racism is not confined to the game`s major football nations either.
Eastern European clubs have been sanctioned by UEFA for abuse of black players, while Jewish leaders in Hungary have called for action over anti-semitic chanting by Ujpest fans against MTK last weekend.
Belgian club Anderlecht had their Serbian striker Nenad Jestrovic sent off after the referee overheard him racially abuse Liverpool`s Mali midfielder Mohamed Sissoko in a Champions League game earlier this month. He was banned for three matches.
BELGIAN PROTEST
Separately, players across Belgium will be wearing a black and white stripe on their faces this weekend as part of a domestic anti-racism initiative.
The common theme is that fines do not work and that calls by club directors too often fall on deaf ears.
Now football`s top administrators have committed themselves to get tough and to wield their biggest sticks.
In October, FIFA president Sepp Blatter called on clubs to be docked points for racism during matches. UEFA vice-president Per Ravn Omdal said on Wednesday that clubs, players and even national associations faced expulsion if they were found guilty of sustained racism.
Clubs do not enjoy being fined - but they live in real dread of being docked points or kicked out of competitions.
Lost points could mean relegation or missing European football, while being denied a coveted Champions League place would cost millions in lost revenues.
Equally punitive would be the shame, that is likely to be long-lived, of becoming the first club to be kicked out of a UEFA competition because of a failure to tackle racism.
Faced with a real threat, clubs would have to take real action in terms of educating their fans and even threatening the racists with exclusion.
Looking back at his stellar career last week, Pele said he felt his biggest contribution to football was not just playing but helping black players to attain the status they have today.
If UEFA and FIFA use their full powers, that status can only increase further.
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