Inter Milan and Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku has proposed the formation of a union comprising the world’s top soccer players to tackle racist abuse in the sport, Lukaku criticized authorities for not adequately protecting players from such abuse.
The call for action follows recent incidents of racism, including the abuse directed at Real Madrid’s Vinícius Jr. during a match against Valencia last month. Lukaku, who experienced racial abuse during an Inter Milan match against Juventus in April, expressed his disbelief at the frequency of such incidents in the sport.
Lukaku envisions the union empowering prominent players to engage directly with UEFA, FIFA, and domestic league governing bodies to discuss the best ways to address racism in soccer. “It’s really disappointing that it happens because we’re in 2023, the world is different cultures, different religions, different people of color and still we make the same mistakes all the time,” he lamented.
According to Lukaku, those in authority must take stricter actions to ensure fans respect people of different colors, religions, and sexual orientations. He also emphasized the need for government involvement in combating online hate directed at players.
Furthermore, Lukaku called for greater diversity in soccer’s highest ranks. In response, FIFA cited the steps taken since 2016 to increase diversity among its staff, who now represent 100 countries, with 40% being female. FIFA also supports Lukaku’s call for government involvement, identifying education in schools as the first step in its five-step plan to tackle racism in soccer.
Lukaku praised FIFA’s appointment of diverse individuals, such as Fatma Samoura, Martin Ngoga, Anin Yeboah, and Mukul Mugdal to key positions, stating, “That’s where you need to start, that’s where we need to have diversity.” He cited the Belgian football federation (RBFA) as an example, with its ‘Come Together’ action plan launched in 2021, and the addition of a Diversity Board to tackle discrimination and improve representation.
The striker believes that placing people of color in positions of power can expedite change. “If you put people of different color in positions of power, I think things would get taken care of much faster than now,” he added.
