Soccer and the stain of racism

By Linda Robertson, Miami Herald

May 18, 2006

Barcelona's Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o has appealed for public support in the campaign to stamp out racism in sport. "Please give me support to banish violence and insults from sport," he said, describing insults on the football pitch as a "world problem." (Photo: BBC)

In Messina, Italy, visiting Inter Milan fans tossed banana peels at Marc Antonio Zoro, who was born in the Ivory Coast.

Brazilian Antonio Geder, who plays for Saturn Moscow, was showered with racist taunts in St. Petersburg when he and the captain of the opposing team raised the Russian flag before a game.

Americans Cory Gibbs and DaMarcus Beasley, who play for Dutch clubs and have been selected to play for the U.S. World Cup team, were initially stung by the vulgarities of fans, but have since learned that the abuse is the price of being a black soccer player in Europe.

''It's blatant, in-your-face racism,'' said Gibbs, who grew up in Broward County. ``You encounter a lot of ignorance and backwardness. You have to constantly remind yourself that you are bigger than them.''

Soccer is the planet's most multicultural sport, but the ugly stain of racism persists.

Brazil, the defending World Cup champion and the favorite to repeat in July, has historically encompassed the full spectrum of skin colors. Pelé -- soccer's living legend, who led Brazil to World Cup titles in 1958, '62 and '70 -- is black. Ronaldinho, the two-time FIFA player of the year, is black. The French team that won the 1998 World Cup was led by players from former French colonies in Africa.

Yet the globalization on the field has not been embraced in the stands, where pockets of intolerance mar ``the beautiful game.''

''Fans see the increasing integration of the rosters and they fear their national identity is being diluted,'' said Professor Edmund Abaka, chair of Africana Studies at the University of Miami. ``They release their frustration at the stadium.''

The monthlong World Cup, which begins June 9, will be the largest sporting event hosted by Germany since the Munich Olympics in 1972, when 11 Israelis were killed during a hostage-taking operation by Palestinian terrorists.

This summer, Germany ''has a unique chance to present herself as a welcoming, tolerant and modern country,'' declared Chancellor Angela Merkel. The World Cup motto is ``A Time to Make Friends.''

But organizers fear that neo-Nazis, inebriated bigots or belligerent hooligans will seek attention during the Cup, which is expected to draw 32 billion TV viewers.

They dread a scene like the one in which Nigerian Adebowale Ogungbure, who plays for Sachsen Leipzig, replied to taunting fans with a Nazi stiff-arm salute, a gesture that is illegal in Germany. The recent beating of an Ethiopian immigrant in Potsdam prompted Germany's Africa Council to warn black visitors to stay away from certain areas in the eastern part of the country, which has been slow to integrate since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The rock band Aryan Hate has a new hit single: White and Full of Hate.

''There could be trouble in Germany,'' said Nick Webster, a Fox Soccer Channel commentator and London native. ``Too many people, too much beer. All the chemistry for something explosive.''

FIFA, soccer's governing body, is pleading for harmony, but it has also taken steps to crack down on racism during the club season. Players can be suspended, fans can be banned from games, and teams can be forced to compete in empty home stadiums. They can also have points deducted from their records and be relegated to lower leagues.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter softened the new rules for the World Cup. Sanctions will apply only to players or team officials on the field or the benches. Before each match, players will hold banners condemning racism, and from the quarterfinals onward, team captains will read anti-racism messages.

A GROWING PROBLEM

Incidents of racist behavior have been on the rise the last two years after a decade of progress, according to FARE (Football Against Racism in Europe). Abaka, the UM professor, cites the combination of economic stagnation in Europe with new waves of immigration from Africa as a major reason for white fans' resentment.

''The fear of immigrants in Europe is similar to the fear of immigrants in the United States,'' he said. ``It's the fear of being overwhelmed by outsiders. It's a hot-button issue. Look at the riots in the Paris suburbs. Look at all the politicians campaigning on antiimmigration platforms. Foreigners have always been objects of blame.''

Racism is not as taboo in some parts of Europe -- especially Spain, Italy and eastern Europe -- as it is in North America, Abaka said.

For example, Ukraine's national team coach, Oleg Blokhin, was quoted as telling the media: ``The more Ukrainians there are playing in the national league, the more examples there are for the young generation. Let them learn from [our players] and not some zumba-bumba whom they took off a tree, gave two bananas and now he plays in the Ukrainian league.''

In the United States, a coach would be fired for such a comment.

''You'll always have racism because people aren't colorblind,'' said Florida International University men's soccer coach Karl Kremser, a native of Germany. ``But over here, there's a sense of decorum. Racism is unacceptable, inappropriate and illegal.''

Cory Gibbs sometimes felt as if he were living in 1950s Jim Crow America during his two years in Germany.

''In the eastern part of Germany, people could be very abrupt and offensive,'' he said. 'I was not allowed in restaurants. They would say, `This is private.' On the field, I heard the monkey noises, and I decided that it would motivate me to play harder.''

DaMarcus Beasley has played for PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands for the past two years.

''You hear the boos and monkey chants every time you touch the ball, and it is difficult, but you can't take it personally,'' he said. ``You have to be a professional. You can't stop to correct the fans.''

The number of black players has swelled in recent years as Europe's premier clubs signed more Africans and Brazilians -- who often become the biggest stars.

Kremser's assistant coach, Munga Eketebi, a native of Zaire who lived in Belgium and Switzerland before coming to FIU, pointed to the recent Champions League final between Chelsea and Milan.

''Chelsea had three English players on the field, and Milan had only four Italians,'' he said. ``When I was growing up, it was rare to see a black player. Now they dominate Arsenal, Bayern Munich -- all the top clubs. The talent from developing countries is undeniable. They are going to keep coming.''

The anti-racism campaign in England is held up as a model of hope. The slogan is ''Stand Up, Speak Up: Show Racism the Red Card.'' Thierry Henry of Arsenal is the spokesman, and Nike is a major promoter. Supporters wear wristbands of interlocking black and white strands.

''There was a lot of animosity toward blacks starting with the wave of immigration from the West Indies in the 1950s,'' said Webster, the Fox commentator. ``But as the population changed, people realized they couldn't be insulting their own players. There's been a big change in attitude in the last decade. If someone shouts racist slurs today, they'll probably get thrown out or beat up. Attitudes are changing more slowly in other countries.''

Harsher penalties and educational campaigns are the way to wipe out what France and Juventus defender Lilian Thuram calls soccer's ``plague.''

The German Football Alliance is suing the right-wing party NPD for publishing a World Cup calendar with a picture of German national team player Patrick Owomoyela's jersey next to the slogan, ``White -- more than the color of a soccer shirt -- for an authentic national team.''

SOLUTIONS PROPOSED

Eketebi suggests compiling a list of racist fans, in the same way England identified hooligans and banned them from stadiums and from traveling outside the country for games. Paris San Germain recently banned fans who unfurled a racist banner from the stadium for three years.

''Hit the offenders hard in the wallet. A fine of $10,000 is a slap on the wrist,'' Kremser said, referring to the fine of the Zaragoza club after the Eto'o incident. ``If clubs can't control their own grounds, make them play all their games away from home.''

Gibbs said more players should speak candidly to raise awareness. ''It's something that will take years and years,'' he said. ``But we should use the popularity of the game to make progress.''