British police arrested 11 people for online racist abuse against black England Football stars, following the Euro 2020 final.
A barrage of racist social media abuse targeted England players Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka after they missed penalties in the shootout at the Euro 2020 final match against Italy.
The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) launched a hate crime investigation into the incident.
According to the UKFPU, 207 posts were found to be criminal.
Widespread Condemnation
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemned the abuse at the time.
Other high profile figures also condemned the online hate.
“There are people out there who believe they can hide behind a social media profile and get away with posting such abhorrent comments,” National Police Chiefs’ Council Football Policing lead, Chief Constable Mark Roberts. “They need to think again.”
Roberts said that a “vast amount of work” had been carried out to identify the 11 people arrested.
“The complexities of investigating social media abuse cannot be underestimated,” added Roberts.
The FA said in a statement it hoped that “these arrests act as a clear deterrent for perpetrators of online abuse who believe there will be no real-world consequences for their actions.”
The FA statement also urged social media companies to take stronger action to “eradicate” online abuse and stop those responsible from using their platforms, calling on the government to speed up the passing of the new Online Harms legislation.
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