Police have warned anyone directing online racist abuse at Premier League footballers that they cannot “hide behind their keyboards” after opening investigations into four separate incidents over the weekend.
The prime minister’s spokesperson has called for social media companies such as Meta – which owns Instagram – to help identify the culprits after the Wolves forward Tolu Arokodare and the Sunderland midfielder Romaine Mundle revealed they had been sent abusive messages after their matches on Sunday. That came after Chelsea’s Wesley Fofana and Burnley’s Hannibal Mejbri had also reported racist messages that were sent to them on Saturday.
“There is absolutely no place for racial abuse, either online or in person, and anyone who believes they can hide behind their keyboards should think again,” said chief constable Mark Roberts, head of of the UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU), which confirmed it has received four separate reports of abuse towards top-flight players over the last three days. “The UKFPU condemns this abhorrent behaviour and we will ensure that, through our dedicated team of officers, we do everything possible to identify those responsible and bring them to justice.”
Anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out has also called for platforms to do more to address the problem and the prime minister’s spokesperson said ministers will be ensuring they “continue to work to protect people from abuse,” adding: “The racism experienced by these footballers is abhorrent. The prime minister has supported footballers before who have had the courage to come forward and call out discrimination and racism and this is no different.”
The Premier League has vowed to assist Wolves’ and Sunderland’s investigations, saying there would be “serious consequences” for guilty parties. However, in sharing images of messages directed to his Instagram account, Fofana made clear he is not convinced that will be the case. “2026, it’s still the same thing, nothing changes. These people are never punished,” wrote the French defender. “You create big campaigns against racism, but nobody actually does anything.”
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Mejbri had earlier shared abusive messages he had received and wrote on his Instagram story: “It’s 2026 and there are still people like that. Educate yourself and your kids, please.”
Nigel Dewale, who sent online abuse to the England defender Jess Carter during the Women’s Euros last summer, is set to be sentenced on 25 March after pleading guilty to a charge of malicious communication in January. Dewale’s arrest and subsequent conviction came about after an investigation was launched by the UKFPU last July.
A spokesperson for Meta said: “No-one should be subjected to racist abuse, and we remove this content when we find it. No one thing will stop racist behaviour overnight, but we’ll continue working to protect our community from abuse and co-operate with police investigations.”
