'There's no room for it': Maritime soccer fans denounce racism against British players after Euro 2020 final

HALIFAX -

The racist reaction by some to England's loss to Italy in the European Championship final is something Maritime soccer fans and organizations say has no place in any sport.

The matchup made headlines as British fans focused on the team's potential to bring home a win after more than fifty years.

But the team's loss in the penalty shootout Sunday brought out the ugly side of sport, as three English players were subjected to racist abuse online for failing to score.

The comments targeting the Black players -- Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka – have been widely decried in online messages, including posts from Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Prince William.

British police have opened investigations into the matter.

For Halifax soccer fans, it was a disappointing reaction to the game's nail-biting result.

"It's disgusting, but unfortunately it's not new in soccer," says Saygun Aktas, who was cheering for Italy.

He says the incident has made the taste of victory bitter, and he can't imagine what it has done to England's players.

"These are 20- to 21-year-olds who missed these penalties, and I can imagine what goes through their minds, their families' minds," he says. "The conflict of playing for your country, and representing the people who make these comments, must be the most challenging emotion."

"It's something that I hope really is addressed," says Marvin Okello.

Okello is the diversity, equity, and inclusion officer for Canadian pro soccer club, the Halifax Wanderers.
He says soccer organizations, like many sports groups, have been working hard to eliminate racism.
He says it's time others to step up.

"Social media companies need to delete the accounts of these people who make these racist comments, and also not to be able to make duplicate accounts," he says, "because that's where it's happening the most."

Both Facebook and Twitter said Monday that they quickly acted to remove the racist comments from their platforms.
Last year, the Wanderers dealt with their own incident of racism, when a group video chat to discuss diversity in sport was hijacked by racist interlopers.

"And what we as an organization refuse to do," says Okello, "is allow people like that to stop us from having these very important, sometimes awkward conversations."

In response, the soccer club started a podcast on inclusion called, "Together for Change."
Soccer Nova Scotia's director of performance says it's up to everyone to send racism to the sidelines.

"There's no room for it in society," says Matt Holton, "and there's definitely no room for it in sport."

A native of the UK, Holton was cheering for England.

"As an England fan, to suffer the defeat and the see that, it's a little embarrassing honestly as an England fan."

He says it's all too easy for young players to become exposed to racist comments on social media, and says the future of the global game relies on creating an inclusive and diverse environment.

"What we can do is do our part and report what we see, and promote diversity, promote education on the subject, and let everyone knows it's not to be tolerated," he says.

Making sure the "beautiful game" moves beyond racism, is top of mind for Saygun Aktas, who just became a new father.

"The problem is not specific to England," he says, "but I watched the games at home with my newborn. When he grows up, I don't want him to worry about this toxic mindset. That's why I think we need to be louder on this topic, we need to put an end to it."