Yaya Toure has said that black players could boycott the World Cup in 2018, which is set to take place in Russia, after he was racially abused by CSKA Moscow fans in their Champion’s League tie against Manchester City.
CSKA fans subjected Toure to racist monkey chants and also set off fireworks in the stadium, with UEFA seeking disciplinary action against the club due to the actions of its supporters. Despite this, the club has claimed its fans are innocent, releasing a statement saying: “Having carefully studied the video of the game, we found no racist insults from fans of CSKA. In many occasions, especially during attacks on our goal, fans booed and whistled to put pressure on rival players, but regardless of their race.”
Criticism has also been leveled at Romanian referee Ovidiu Hategan, who failed to follow UEFA procedures upon hearing the racist chants by not issuing a stadium announcement warning ordering CSKA’s supporters to stop.
Toure’s terrible treatment at the hands of CSKA fans is part of a wider issue in Russian football, and when the Ivory Coast international was asked following the game whether Russia needs to treat racism more seriously he replied: “Of course they do. It’s very important. Otherwise if we are not confident coming to the World Cup in Russia, we don’t come.”
Russia is already a dubious choice to hold the World Cup given its terrifying homophobic law, which punishes “homosexual behaviour” with up to three years imprisonment. FIFA has turned a blind eye to gay football fans who are afraid of persecution if they travel to the event, with FIFA President Sepp Blatter saying that they should simply “refrain from any sexual activities” while visiting the country.
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