Premier League giants Chelsea have sharply condemned online racist abuse against defender Reece James and urged social media outlets to take tough measures against those who engage in such “despicable behavior”.
ALSO READ: West Bromwich Albion contacted police after the player was exposed to online racism
The 21-year-old gamer went to Instagram to share the screenshot of the abusive messages he received on Instagram, titled “something needs to change”.
“Everyone at Chelsea is disgusted with the racial abuse Reece James received on social media on Friday night,” the Premier League club said in a statement.
“This club finds racism and all forms of discriminatory behavior unacceptable.”
ALSO READ: Ole Solskjaer calls racist abuse of Manchester United players “disgusting”
West Brom midfielder Romaine Sawyers this week and Man Utd’s Axel Tuanzebe and Anthony Martial have also been victims of online racial abuse this week.
“We are reaching out to those who are calling on social media platforms and regulators to take stronger, more effective and more urgent action against this despicable behavior,” said Chelsea.
“Something has to change and it has to change now.”
UK ministers met with top UK players on Monday to discuss online abuse and discrimination as part of a series of “Future of Football” discussions.
Chelsea, who is eighth in the table with 30 points from 20 games, will host Burnley on Sunday.
(Posts from Reuters)
