It goes without saying that dealing with racism in football has never been easy and will never been easy. To a certain extent, the global football scene has made tremendous progress in dealing with the issue, but players, managers and fans continue to bear the brunt of it all over the world, as depicted by an incident that occured a couple of days back.
Serbian football can be pretty hostile at times, and Brazilian footballer Everton Luiz was made to feel the full effect of it, when his side [Red Star Belgrade] faced Rad Beograd away from home, in what is usually an explosive Belgrade derby.
Banner and monkey chants
It didn’t take long for Luiz to realise that he was being targeted by home fans. They initially unveiled a racist banner, before proceeding to jeer at him with monkey chants. The match was then temporarily stopped at one point, as officials removed the banner and sent out a stern warning via the PA system within the stadium.
But that didn’t stop the Rad fans from continuing their verbal abuse throughout the 90 minutes. As soon as the final whistle was blown, Luiz walked towards them and made an obscene gesture, which sparked a brawl between players from both teams.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=112&v=Ls2RUveamJc
“I was racially abused for 90 minutes”
Luiz also broke down after the match, as his teammates and coaching staff attempted to console him. After the match, he released a statement of his own via Reuters, explaining how traumatic the incident was to him, on a personal level.
“My family and I feel at home in Serbia and this is why I could not stop the tears after the game,” he said, according to Reuters. “I took 90 minutes of racist abuse and other insults from the terraces and thereafter I found myself in a cauldron of emotionless individuals who charged at me when they should have protected me. I want to forget this, refocus on football and urge everyone to say ‘No’ to racism.”
Rad Beograd pay the price
As a result of their fans’ filthy behaviour over the weekend, Rad Beograd have been made to pay the price after Serbia’s football governing body suspended them from playing at their home ground for the time being.
“Due to the misbehaviour of their fans who racially insulted a player, Rad’s stadium has been suspended until the Serbian Football Association (FSS) passes a verdict,” said league’s commissioner Vladimir Bulatovic.
“The suspension means no first division games will be played at the venue until a final decision is made and disciplinary proceedings have been opened against all parties involved in the incident.”
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