In England, racist hostilities were also directed against the former Bochum talent Armel Bella-Kotchap. The national player reacted with an appeal.
After his transfer from VfL Bochum to England, Armel Bella-Kotchap is fighting to stay in the league with Southampton FC. After only one defeat in their last four games, the bottom club has renewed hope, most recently earning a respectable 0-0 draw against Manchester United. However, the draw was overshadowed by racist remarks against Southampton FC professionals.
Bella-Kotchap also faced hostility on social media. “Yesterday I was the victim of several racist remarks that hit me,” he shared on his Instagram story on Monday.
The 21-year-old German international appealed: “All people in our diverse society should feel safe and free. For this, everyone must get involved and take action against racism. Because the best remedy against racism is ourselves.”
Bella-Kotchap’s teammate Kyle Walker-Peters, in particular, received some harsh abuse. Screenshots published in English media show the defender being insulted because of his skin colour, including with monkey emojis. It was probably triggered by a duel between Walker-Peters and Manchester’s Alejandro Garnacho, who was injured in the process.
Bella Kotchap club informs police.
“On a personal level, the racist abuse I suffered is something no player or person should ever have to go through,” Walker-Peters wrote on Instagram, receiving a lot of encouragement in the comments, including from Garnacho.
Southampton FC also took a stand. The club expressed its “disgust and disappointment at the behaviour of those online who stoop to abusing players because of the colour of their skin”.
England said it had referred the hate comments to the police and reported them to the social media platforms. It said the club was fighting “every day to remove such people from our sport and our community to protect our players, our staff, Southampton fans and especially those football fans around the world who recognise and celebrate the diversity that is football”.