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The incident involving racial abuse on social media to England women defender Jess Carter during Euro 2025 led to a collective decision by the team. On Sunday, the Lionesses said they would stop the anti-racism gesture as it was “clear we and football need to find another way to tackle racism.” Upon learning of such abuse, the England Football Association contacted UK police. After the incident Carter announced she would be stepping away from social media to concentrate on the remainder of the competition.
The collective of the England women's football team of stopping the anti-racism gesture is being questioned by the head of football’s international anti-discrimination body, Fare. According to a report by BBC, the executive director of Fare, Piara Powar said it was time for regulator Ofcom to take action against social media platforms, but also expressed disappointment at England’s stance. “The taking of the knee is a powerful anti-racist act and this England team has shown leadership across Europe in taking it for so long,” said Powar. She further added that, “Powerful actions are needed right now, to deal with the issues that are being played out as we speak.”
I don’t think it’s ok to target someone’s appearance or race: Jess Carter
The 27-year-old defender has started all four of England's games in Switzerland so far, but revealed she has been subject to racist slurs on her social media accounts since the tournament began, In a statement shared on her social media platforms, Carter, who has earned 49 England caps said, “From the start of the tournament I have experienced a lot of racial abuse, whilst I feel every fan is entitled to their opinion on performance and result, I don’t agree or think it’s OK to target someone’s appearance or race.”
Carter is not the first England player to face racial abuse. In 2023, Lauren James was targeted online following a defeat with her club side, Chelsea. England men’s players Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, and Jadon Sancho also faced a wave of racist abuse after missing penalties in the Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy.
