Prince William, Boris Johnson and the rest of England furious after…

“These people are an embarrassment to the England national team and all the true fans who wanted to enjoy one of the most important matches in our history,” a BBC spokesperson said. “What are people thinking when they go online and insult those players? What’s wrong with some people?” former English captain Alan Shearer told the public broadcaster. “It’s just so sad and ridiculous. I hope the social media companies reveal who these individuals are because this is really disgusting.” On Twitter, he received support from Match Of The Day presenter Gary Lineker, arguably the most influential man in English football.

Even Prince William is making himself heard

Prince William, an attentive spectator at Wembley Sunday night, also joined the debate. “I’m sick of the racist insults England players had to endure after the match. It is completely unacceptable that players should endure this reprehensible behavior. This must stop now and everyone involved must be held accountable.”

Arsenal, the club of Saka, and the English Football Association have also issued a statement that strongly condemns the statements. Both are calling on social media companies to take action. “They must do something now to make sure that these disgusting insults that players are subjected to every day stop immediately,” it said. More than two months ago, English Premier League clubs went on a several-day boycott of social media out of dissatisfaction with the racist insults that their players get there.

Black Lives Matter

Even before the tournament started, the English fans made themselves known by blowing the whistle as the players knelt in front of Black Lives Matter, a symbolic gesture to indicate that blacks and whites are still not equal in our society. British MP David Lammy (Labour) shared a few horrific print screens on Monday morning of football fans who encourage violence against blacks after the penalty misses of the three. “This is exactly why we kneel,” he wrote. “We pray for a better future.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson also expressed his disgust on his Twitter account. “This England squad should be celebrated as heroes, not racially offended on social media. Those responsible for this should be ashamed.” Home Secretary Priti Patel says she is “disgusted by this”. “There is no place for this in our country and I support the police to hold the perpetrators accountable for this.”

Call for severe punishment

However, those statements were met with sharp criticism from the Labor opposition. They recall that Johnson failed to speak out clearly when fans jeered at the kneeling players.

Manchester United icon Gary Neville also presented Sky News with a hard-hitting argument against his prime minister. “Sorry, but this just starts at the top, as parents can also set a bad example for their children,” he referred to Johnson. “We have a problem in football where there is a feeling that it is okay to judge players for their sporting achievements because of their skin color. It’s sad, but I expected this from the moment those three guys missed their penalty yesterday. This must be followed to make it clear that this is not okay. Not only by the social media companies, but also by the football associations FA, UEFA and FIFA. Only severe penalties are appropriate here.”

Former professional football player and coach Leroy Rosenior, ambassador for the English anti-racism federation Show Racism The Red Card, was not satisfied with only indignant words from prominent people. On the BBC, he calls on the government to take tougher action. “I’m fed up with people who just point the finger and say ‘they shouldn’t do this‘. Those guys have done more than anyone to bring everyone together.”