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Arrests for hate crime at football more than doubled last season before lockdown

A general and abstract view of police standing vigil as fans coming down the steps at Wembley Park station  - Getty Images
A general and abstract view of police standing vigil as fans coming down the steps at Wembley Park station - Getty Images

Arrests for racist and indecent chanting in English football more than doubled last season compared to the previous campaign, despite the coronavirus crisis denying fans access to more than 500 matches, according to a Home Office report.

In a troubling turn of events, it has emerged that there were 35 such arrests for 2019/20 compared to 14 in 2018/19, even though a total of 546 games were either cancelled or played behind closed doors last term due to the pandemic.

The report also logged for the first time every hate crime incident - whether online or in person - which was reported to the UK Football Policing Unit by the equality and inclusion body, Kick It Out, or the Football Association.

It found that there were hate crime incidents related to 287 matches, a figure which was second only to the use of pyrotechnics at 309 fixtures and which the country’s football police chief branded “incredibly concerning”.

The incidents reported often included more than one form of discrimination, with the report documenting that 75 per cent of the offences related to race and 27 per cent to sexual identity. Of the hate crimes, 23 mentioned religion, three related to disability and one to gender identity.

Concern was also raised about the number of reports of assaults on stadium staff and police officers, which were only just before the 2018/19 levels despite the mass reduction in fan attendance. In total, there were 120 reports of stadium staff being assaulted last season, only five fewer than the figure for the previous year. There were 46 reports of police officers being attacked compared to 57 in 2018/19.

Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts in Russia for the 2018 World Cup - Julian Simmonds
Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts in Russia for the 2018 World Cup - Julian Simmonds

Mark Roberts, deputy chief constable of South Yorkshire police and the UK’s football police chief, said: “The hate crime figures are incredibly concerning.

“We want to see this behaviour eradicated from football. We are working closely with Kick it Out, the Premier League and other partners, with a concerted effort to tackle hate crime both in the stadium and online.

“It is important the clubs and the leagues continue to ensure the police are made aware of all incidents so local forces can work with them to tackle the incidents as they occur.

“We are also working to help tackle the causes of hate crime, with a mixture of education, helping those involved to understand the harm it causes, and diversionary activities for young supporters.

“This will remain a focus until we are able to eliminate this vile behaviour and ensure a safe and friendly space for everyone to support and enjoy football.”

The Home Office report also looked at banning orders and other football-related arrests and found there were 1,089 football-related arrests in 2019-20, a 21 per cent drop on the previous year, albeit with far fewer games played in front of fans.

Clubs with the highest number of supporters arrested
Clubs with the highest number of supporters arrested

Leeds United had the country’s worst track record, with 52 arrests, closely followed by Birmingham City (49) and Bolton Wanderers (45).

The report showed 360 new banning orders were issued last season, down 34 per cent compared to 2018/19. Stoke City had the most banning orders in force during 2019/20, with 52.

Discussing the report’s overall findings, a Home Office spokesperson said: “Hate crime has no place in football or anywhere else and we must all come together to confront it.

“The increase shown in these statistics is partly down to better recording and awareness, but we have no complacency in stamping out this evil from the game.

“We are bringing forward legislation to force social media companies to remove racist, homophobic and anti-Semitic abuse and we are working closer than ever before with the football authorities to bring perpetrators to justice.”

Kick It Out’s annual report, which was published earlier this month, showed there had been a 42 per cent increase in reports of discrimination last season compared to 2018-19, a rise from 313 to 446. going up from 313 to 446.

“We need to mobilise everyone to stand against the rise in hate,” Kick It Out chair Sanjay Bhandari said. “Kick It Out will play its part with campaigning, education and talent programmes that diversify the face of football. But this is everyone’s responsibility. We all need to do more and we all need to take a stand against discrimination.

“We also look forward to working with the Home Office and the government to look at better protection for players, fans and participants of football, especially when it comes to online hate.”