Racial abuse was hurled at Soccer‘s Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku after sinking a winning penalty against Cagliari, during a Serie A match at the Sardinian team’s home stadium Sardegna Arena.
Building on a 28th minute opener by Lautaro Martinez, the Belgian striker Lukaku scored from the penalty spot with only 20 minutes left on the clock, to cement a 2-1 win Inter Milan and give head coach Antonio Conte reason to celebrate. However, Lukaku’s penalty was tarnished as booed and the fans got more aggressive and took to making monkey noises and chants due to the fact that Lukaku is black.
The former Manchester United player was transferred this summer to Inter Milan for €70 million scored his second goal in two games this season with the penalty. He was visibly infuriated by the racial abuse, directing a stern look at the stands.
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The Inter Milan team promptly huddled around the Antwerp-born professional footballer, as a show of support and respect, after the 2-1 victory. With the win, Inter Milan became the top-seeded Serie A team, overtaking defending champions Juventus.
In a statement following the heated match, Lukaku called on football federations around the world to strongly denounce cases of player discrimination, citing similar instances of racial abuse in the past few months. He also called on social media platforms to work with football clubs, amid the increasing prevalence of racist comments and cyber-bullying on the profiles of athletes of color.
Just this Saturday, Chelsea center-back Kurt Zouma was bombarded with racist abuse on Twitter after an own goal slip-up that led to a 2-2 draw with Sheffield United. Similarly, Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham recently became the target of online vitriol after fumbling a penalty during a UEFA Super Cup bout against Liverpool.
The Anti-discrimination body Fare has flagged a troubling history of racial discrimination in Cagliari. Just this April, the Cagliari crowd erupted in similar jeers after Italian Juventus forward Moise Kean finished off a 2-0 lopsided win against the local team.
The Serie A disciplinary panel, although labeling the unsportsmanlike demeanor as reprehensible, found no reason to hold the Cagliari camp accountable, saying the team had little control over the conduct of its fans. However, Kean was slapped with a fine for diving in the penalty area in celebration, after a goal early in the match.
Both then Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri and Cagliari boss Tommaso Giulini chided the 19-year-old Kean for provoking the home stadium fans with his antics.
While it is a difficult task, football federations must do more to ensure that players are not subjected to any form of racial abuse in any country.
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