By Paul Nicholson
June 15 – FIFA has re-inforced a three-stage process that will ultimately give referees at the Confederations Cup in Russia the power to abandon games if discriminatory behaviour by fans gets out of control. This follows a procedure first encouraged by UEFA in 2009 and re-iterated in 2013 following incidents in Italy and the comments of then FIFA president Sepp Blatter that fines were not sufficient to combat the issues.
Russia has a history of racist and discriminatory behaviour, particularly towards black players, but has taken some steps to improve education and brought in a number of police powers to tackle incidents.
The move by FIFA gives the referees the tools to attack the incidents at source rather than try and backwards investigate and regulate after games have been played.
Referees will have the power to enact a three-step procedure that is already in use in parts of Europe. The first step is to halt the match and make a public announcement requesting fans to stop the behaviour, the second step is to remove the players from the pitch and temporarily suspend the game, and if the behaviour continues the third step is to abandon the game.
FIFA, which controversially disbanded its anti-discrimination task force earlier this year, will also deploy anti-discrimination officials in crowds to detect and report abusive behaviour. FIFA has previously used observers, who are trained by the Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) network, at the 2018 World Cup qualifiers and specific international friendlies.
The move by FIFA to highlight the powers available to referees comes just two days before the opening game of the Confederations Cup in St Petersburg, Russia, where the hosts will face New Zealand. The hope is that this signals a much stronger FIFA policy on anti-discrimination measures following a period where there has been no discernible strategy but which has seen a series of high profile racist incidents that seemingly have gone unnoticed except in the media.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino, in China yesterday meeting president Xi Jianping, issued a statement saying: “These are ground-breaking changes in the global fight against discrimination that will mark the 2017 edition of the FIFA Confederations Cup. Both initiatives are extra tools for the referees and match officials to prevent discriminatory attitudes and ensure that the atmosphere in the stadium is one of fair play and respect.”
For its part Russia is well aware of the discrimination issues and has taken its own steps to combat the problems. In an interview with Insideworldfootball in May, Alexei Smertin a Russia 2018 World Cup ambassador who has been given a wider anti-discrimination role to spearhead campaigns tackling a variety of issues, brought the problems into focus.
“Wherever discrimination is found in the world it needs to be combatted,” said Smertin. “In Russia, we want to make our stadia places to come and enjoy football, for everyone… We are embarking on a widespread programme of education and engagement, and we have also imposed strict – but fair- penalties for misbehaviour. We are also learning from our friends and partners abroad – for example, the Russian authorities are liaising with British police on how they reduced their hooligan problem. Already we have laws passed to prevent known hooligans from entering Russia and to prosecute those here who misbehave,” said Smertin.
“We want to make Russia a positive example for everyone else. I want, and this is not just a dream, for people in Boston, Tokyo, Dublin, London, Cairo to point to us and say, ‘Wow, we want the same’.
“We, in Russia, want to change perceptions by being the best host ever for the World Cup, and beyond that, to lead by example. There are lots of positive and inclusive football projects underway in Russia, and there will be many more in the coming months and years. Of course, from time to time, mistakes are made, incidents of discrimination occur, however we must make it our goal to eliminate these through inclusivity and engagement – and long term bring more people to into our sport.”
See the interview with Alexei Smertin at http://www.insideworldfootball.com/2017/05/10/going-war-russian-front-smertin-puts-discrimination-top-agenda/
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