It is 30 years since Newcastle United first took a stand against racism. But there is still work to be done

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The fixture against Bournemouth, Howe’s former club, will be Newcastle’s first at home since their miserable 2-1 defeat to Sunderland. On and off the pitch, it was a troubling day, with a second sapping loss to their local rivals this season bringing jeers and a spike of pressure. It was accompanied by an allegation of racist abuse aimed at Lutsharel Geertruida, the Sunderland defender. This invoked the Premier League’s anti-discrimination protocol, which saw Anthony Taylor, the referee, halt the match for three minutes and, along with the fourth official, bring the incident to the attention of both benches and captains. After the game, both clubs condemned all forms of racism, while on April 1, a 45-year-old man from Gateshead was arrested by Northumbria Police on suspicion of a racially-aggravated public order offence and then released on bail. Bournemouth also happens to be the match round when the Premier League highlights its own No Room for Racism initiative which, in turn, will see Newcastle promote their own work in this field, both inside the stadium and on their social media channels. Amongst other things, screens inside St James’ will feature anti-racism messages with reminders that abuse will bring consequences. This juxtaposition is both purely coincidental and timely, reminding everybody of the distance that has been travelled over the last three decades and how far there is still to go. Racism in English football is less overt than it used to be; Black players are not booed simply for being Black, they do not have bananas pelted at them, stadiums are no longer recruiting grounds for the far right and crowds are diverse. But it is still there and it is insidious. On the one hand, Ged Grebby, SRTRC’s founder and chief executive, says “football has arguably done more than anything” to educate and inform, but on the other he believes “racism is now worse than it was”, pointing to the normalisation of populism, the better organisation of extremist groups and how an unfiltered social media amplifies ignorance and hate. Inside grounds, people are more aware they will be caught and punished for being racist. Online is another matter. The contrast, the change, is summed up by Les Ferdinand, the majestic centre-forward who joined Kevin Keegan’s team in 1995, becoming only the eighth Black player to represent Newcastle (which somehow feels improbable now). “When I was growing up, I wanted to watch football but I wasn’t allowed to go into a stadium, because my parents feared for my safety,” Ferdinand, 59, tells The Athletic. “They didn’t feel it was a safe environment for me. Football in the ’70s and ’80s was a place where people could go and vent their frustrations at you being a different colour and were allowed to get away with it. There were monkey chants and banana-throwing and all the stuff came with it. “We had programmes on the television that depicted racism and and it was just allowed to happen and nobody frowned, nobody called it out — it was something that was done. In football, it was seen as part and parcel of the game. People would abuse you because of your colour and no one said anything and then they would go to their mates ‘see you next week’ and the same thing would happen week in, week out. “I came into the Queens Park Rangers team in 1987 and I remember being racially abused by Everton fans. We had a good young defender, Paul Parker, who was being targeted by a load of big clubs before he went to Manchester United and he got messages and letters from people saying, ‘We don’t want your sort at our club’, and so on. That stuff was still prevalent when I was playing. “I’d like to think that today it doesn’t matter where you’re from, what nationality you are, what colour your skin is — you would feel safe going into a stadium to watch a game of football. Show Racism The Red Card and all the organisations that try to combat racism in football are a major part of that being the case.” Shaka Hislop, a team-mate of Ferdinand’s at Newcastle, was instrumental in the formation of SRTRC, donating money to them. Hislop, the former Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper, had been racially abused by a group of young people as he filled his car with petrol close to St James’; when they got closer to him and realised he was a Newcastle footballer, he was asked for his autograph. In this context, the incident against Sunderland stood out; it was only one voice but the effect of it was visceral and arresting. At the time, it was not immediately apparent what was happening; play had already been stopped for Sven Botman, the Newcastle defender, to receive treatment for a facial injury, when Granit Xhaka, Sunderland’s captain, ran over to talk to Taylor. “When I heard about the report of racist abuse during the game, I was genuinely disgusted,” Lisa Mole, chair of the Newcastle United Supporters Trust (NUST), says. “It’s appalling that something like this has happened. Our fanbase has such a strong reputation for being welcoming, warm and friendly. That’s a core part of our identity. “Incidents like this are a real smear on that reputation and importantly they do not represent who we are as supporters.” It is tempting to call the incident shocking, but Ferdinand, who spent eight years as QPR’s director of football and now works as a television pundit, rejects this. “I’m not shocked by it,” he says. “Whenever I’m working at games and there’s a penalty shootout, I’m always fearful for the Black person stepping forward to take one, because if they miss, it’s not about them hitting it badly or losing a shootout. What comes into it is their colour. “We’re seeing it time and time again. Guys that miss penalties or miss a chance, they’re racially abused all over social media. So when you say it’s shocking … of course, it’s hugely disappointing we’re still talking about it, but I’ve never believed it’s gone away. It always rears its ugly head. It’s just moved elsewhere.” Wor Flags, the independent Newcastle fans group, who have produced the banners for the Bournemouth game, have previously organised displays in support of Joe Willock after the midfielder was racially abused on social media. The Premier League point out they have a “team of experts dedicated to monitoring and investigating online racist abuse” and that “abusers could face custodial sentences, football banning orders, criminal records, fines, community orders or police-mandated educational programmes”. They say that since 2021, more than 4,000 cases have been investigated with legal action “brought against abusers across three continents”. Those numbers are horrifying, but there is a more heartening narrative. Football is often viewed through the prism of bad behaviour, but back in the ’80s and ’90s, there was a strong fan-led response to racism and discrimination, which is an important part of SRTRC’s story. When the National Front distributed literature outside the gates of St James’ on matchdays, there were counter-demonstrations. Wor Flags, who have played such a pivotal role in generating match-day atmosphere at St James’, are fan-funded. Mole and the NUST have worked in tandem with the Football Supporters’ Association to ensure the funding of the ‘First Black XI’ project, which will also feature an exhibition inside the stadium’s Milburn Stand. Tony Cunningham and Andrew Cole, two of Newcastle’s first 11 Black players, will be in attendance. Ferdinand confesses to having “mixed feelings” about his flag. “Should it be celebrated just because I was Black? Or should it be because I was a footballer and I did OK while I was there?” he says. As a side note, this downplays Ferdinand’s impact at Newcastle, where he scored 50 goals in only 84 games and is rightly revered, but the idea behind the project is less about achievement and more about history and education. Not all of it is easy. Howard Gayle became Newcastle’s first Black player when he joined on loan from Liverpool (he was also their first Black player) in 1982. Cunningham was the second and their first permanent Black signing. The XI features cult heroes like Mirandinha, the first Brazilian to play in English football, Franz Carr (“Ooh ahh, Franzie Carr,”), and Faustino Asprilla, plus Ferdinand, Hislop, Cole, Ruel Fox and John Barnes. There is also a flag for Justin Fashanu, who had an unsuccessful trial with Newcastle and made just one substitute appearance for the club in the League Cup in 1991. The year before, Fashanu had become the first openly gay professional footballer in the UK. SRTRC have collated similar exhibitions at other clubs. “Black history is massively overlooked, in football as well as everywhere else,” Grebby says. “This is a way of really bringing it to life.” If Sunderland was a very bad day, then Bournemouth offers something different; an opportunity, in Mole’s words, to “shine a light on the diversity that has always been part of Newcastle’s history and reinforce the values we should all be upholding”. The club’s own diversity, inclusion and welfare programme is called “United As One”, which is a better reflection of identity than abuse. As the old terrace chant goes, “Newcastle United, Will never be defeated.” “NUST represents members from all ethnicities and backgrounds and the reaction across our member community to what happened against Sunderland has been one of real anger and disgust,” Mole says. “It was already a horrific day for supporters with the result in the derby, but to then hear about this kind of behaviour made it, for many, feel completely devastating. “The overwhelming majority of Newcastle fans embody inclusivity and respect and it is deeply frustrating to see that undermined in this way. There is simply no place for racism in our stands and we must continue to call it out and ensure it is not tolerated.” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms George Caulkin has been reporting on football in the North East of England since 1994, 21 of those years for The Times. There have been a few ups, a multitude of downs and precisely one meaningful trophy. Follow George on Twitter @GeorgeCaulkin