Will FIFA take racism seriously, or does money talk too loudly?

I was troubled during the Euros by watching the games that were held in Hungary being to the backdrop of their government and its views on society in general, and equality in particular. To watch the game against England in the recent World Cup qualifiers was horrendous, not unexpected but still of grave concern. FIFA who claimed to have solved racism in football claim to be keen to send a message that racism will not be tolerated, but is that really the case? Do they actually care about progress or are they more interested in having partners who share their vision for the game.

Now although Hungary will be the main focus of this piece it is of course worth pointing out that we in England still have an issue with racism, some of it centred around football but we still need to call it out anywhere we see it. The treatment that players like Raheem Sterling, Tyrone Mings, Jude Bellingham and others put up with is outrageous, and I would hope that we would not see anything like this at any games involving Newcastle. I am also not na’ve and have written that as with most clubs, we still have work to do.

Viktor Orban has made football and sport in general the central driver of his changes in society. His refusal to attend a game in Munich during the Euros when the rainbow flag was to be shown around the outside of the Allianz Arena was widely condemned. UEFA was considering relocating the final from Wembley if special dispensation was not given to officials, and the Puskas Arena was seen as a likely destination. And yet, UEFA had already decided that Hungary would play three games behind closed doors due to racist and homophobic behaviour of their supporters. Maybe the lack of any COVID restrictions was involved but it seems strange that after issuing a ban, flags being carried to games being investigated for their discriminatory tone, anti-LGBTQ+ legislation being passed to wide condemnation, UEFA thought this would be a good host for the final if Wembley was out.

Now I find it difficult that FIFA in the next stage of the war against UEFA has already taken Hungary on as a minor darling of Europe. They decided that any punishments from UEFA were not applicable to World Cup qualifiers so there would be no stadium ban when England visited. Cue the atrocious scenes that were seen and heard by most England fans, Raheem Sterling scoring to spark jubilation amongst the England squad and some players leaving no doubt what they thought of the reception their teammates received.

FIFA issued a statement which included the following lines. Firstly they said ‘FIFA’s position remains firm and resolute in rejecting any form of racism and violence as well as any other form of discrimination or abuse’. The sentiment here is clear, but I thought Infantino had told us this problem was sorted. Surely due to the nature of this taking place when UEFA had already delivered a harsh punishment just two months earlier, the world governing body would go further and send a message to countries all over the world. Surely they would reject it in the strongest possible terms.

The second part of the statement said ‘Fifa takes a clear zero tolerance stance against such abhorrent behaviour in football.’ Again strong words, I looked forward with a sense of disappointment looming to what this zero tolerance would look like.

When the decision came, my disappointment was more than looming. FIFA decided Hungary would play one qualifier behind closed doors (against Albania in October) and they should be fined two hundred thousand Swiss francs, or one hundred and fifty eight thousand pounds. It is now fair to wonder what zero tolerance means, as Troy Townsend from Kick It Out said, if the punishment does no real damage to the perpetrators, or asks the federation to take any action.

So here is an idea, FIFA could make a charter that applies to all competitions and to any forms of discrimination equally. Remember that four years ago Hungary were fined thirty thousand Swiss francs for homophobic abuse of Ronaldo. So rather than a sliding scale of incompetence, where the money ploughed into football despite huge numbers of Hungarians living below the poverty line can buy favour with FIFA, we could actually see harsh punishments given out.

If Hungary, or any other country, were refused the opportunity to qualify for the World Cup in 2026 would that make it happen? If people think that goes too far, what about points deductions. An instant impact for the behaviour. One issue with that though is if it was certain that a team would not qualify would it be impacted?

For me a tournament ban shows zero tolerance, it shows how serious discrimination is taken by the powers who claim to want to tackle this for the greater good. When a player walks off the field after suffering racial abuse, they can be booked, sent off or suspended for a game. That is the victim. When the guilty get the same punishment as the innocent there is a problem, it is a problem FIFA does not want to tackle, as it means taking on all forms of discrimination and that means facing up to losing votes and money. Zero tolerance only exists in words, not actions.

Stephen Ord’ ”””””””””’ @smord84