September 23 – English football may be trying to take a lead in stamping out racism but discrimination is far from being eliminated on social media as witnessed by the fact that police have opened an investigation after Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli was subjected to racist online abuse for sending a tweet.
The Italian international tweeted “Man Utd…LOL” after Liverpool’s arch-rivals Manchester United crashed to a surprise 5-3 defeat by Leicester City on Sunday in the English Premier League.
Balotelli’s tweet was retweeted 150,000 times and met with a torrent of abuse.
“We extend our support to Mario Balotelli after the appalling racist abuse directed at him on Twitter,” said the British anti-racism group Kick It Out.
“During the 2013/14 season, 50 percent of all complaints submitted to us from across the game related to social media abuse,” added the statement. “The issue has been escalating and we urge fellow social media users to assist in bringing this type of abuse to the attention of the authorities.”
Balotelli, formerly of Manchester City, joined Liverpool from Milan for £16 million in the summer but the Merseyside club have lost three of their opening five league games. Merseyside police say there has been no formal complaint from Liverpool or the player but that they are “making enquiries”.
It’s not the first time the Italian, who was adopted after being born to Ghanaian immigrant parents, has found himself the subject centre of racial abuse, particularly in Italy. Last year, he threatened to walk off the pitch if he received further racial abuse after the referee temporarily halted play because of racist chanting during a game against Roma.
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