European Soccer

So, I was channel surfing this weekend looking for anything to hold my attention when I flipped to HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. There was a Black guy with a french accent being interviewed so I stopped surfing momentarily to investigate. I thought hmmm interesting! Who is this guy? And what makes him interesting enough to be profiled on Real Sports... I discovered that the guy is Thierry Henry and that he's a soccer star in Europe. And what made him interesting enough to interviewd by Real Sports... is his stance against racism in soccer. It seems Black soccer players in Europe have to endure some very ugly and very overt racial behavior by white soccer fans in Europe. Here's the summary of the segment on Real Sports' web page:

* A Source of Shame

One of the biggest challenges for American sports fans is understanding the huge appeal of professional soccer (football) in Europe. To a large degree, the scope of the intense hometown support and spirited rivalries that exist between dueling teams is admirable athletic competition. But extreme fan behavior is also part of the mix in European football. Now, a three-year REAL SPORTS investigation uncovers a disturbing, unchecked aspect of fan activity -- blatant racism. Among examples of extreme fan reaction to individual players are the mimicking of monkey sounds and the throwing of bananas anytime a black player touches the ball, as well as the waving of swastikas and open Nazi salutes. Speaking with Bryant Gumbel, players such as Thierry Henry of England's Arsenal reveal that in parts of Europe "home field advantage" has less to do with the color of one's jersey and more to do with the color of one's skin. *

Real Sports... showed video clips of the aforementioned racial taunts and it was so out of control. If I remember correctly, fans in Spain were singled out for making "monkey sounds." Supposedly, the taunts are an insult to England for having to employ Black soccer players while the Spanish team is of pure European blood. Real Sports... showed pictures of a soccer player passionately doing the Nazi salute on the sidelines of the soccer field during a game to his fellow Nazi supports in the stands.

They interviewed a white English man who is vehemently opposed to Blacks playing soccer for England because they aren't pure blood English descendants. In fact, he wants all ethnics deported or removed from England. The guy went on to talk about he does a lot recruiting for the Nazi group (or Nazi-like group) he's a member of at the soccer games. He said there are lots of working class white men that attend the games that are disillusioned with the current state of affairs and it's pretty easy to recruit them to join his group.

Bryant Gumbel interviewed the President of UFEA - the governing body of European soccer. Gumbel questioned the President's sensitivity to the needs of the Black players in the league. Gumbel also questioned whether or not the board's racial make up (all of the board members were white) has played a part in UFEA's relatively lax response to overt racism in the league. The President conceded that counsel from a person of colour probably would have made a difference in his and the boards understading of racism in the league and the problems the players face.

Gumbel interviewed another Black soccer player whose name escapes my memory. This guy was completely at a loss for words describing his disbelief in the hatred he and other soccer players are forced to tolerate. He said there are times when he would love nothing more than to jump in the stands and fight the people taunting him. But he said that would only bring him down to their level and make him no better than them.

Gumbel also chatted with a guy from the organization Kick It Out whose slogan is Let's Kick Racism Out of Football. From their website: Kick It Out works throughout the football, educational and community sectors to challenge racism and work for positive change.

The segment ended with Gumbel asking Thierry whether or not racism would still be as prevalent in soccer 5 years from now. Thierry really couldn't answer that question but said he hoped his efforts to fight against racism would make it better for those coming after him.

Thierry launched Stand Up, Speak Up to combat racism. He is selling interlocking black & white bracelets to raise money for his campaign.

The caption in the pic reads:
"...Racism is the biggest problem facing football across Europe. People may think it has disappeared, but it hasn't. It's time for us all to take a stand - players, fans and authorities. It's time to stand up and speak up." - THIERRY HENRY

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