The Republic of Ireland defender Cyrus Christie has revealed that he has received racist abuse on Twitter following his country’s failure to qualify for the World Cup. In a statement posted on social mediaChristie highlighted “a number of racist comments” and said those responsible “do not belong in football or any other sport”.
James McClean drew attention to the issue while speaking at the PFA Ireland awards on Saturday, and the Football Association of Ireland has now referred a number of posts aimed at the defender to police in Ireland. PFA Ireland and the charity Show Racism the Red Card (SRTRC) issued a joint statement on Monday night, condemning the abuse and referencing a tweet which they claim “urged him to go to Jamaica and boasted about wanting to lynch him”.
“I’d like to say I am extremely proud to represent my country, the Republic of Ireland, and I give everything I can each time I put on the green shirt,” Christie said in his statement. “I genuinely believe our fans are some of the best in the world.
“However, there have been a number of racist comments which have been brought to my attention during the World Cup qualifying campaign over the last couple of months and, most recently, last week,” he added.
“These comments are not representative of our fans or our sport. We were all deeply upset to not reach the World Cup finals and are hurting just as much as everyone else. It is deeply saddening that racism is still part of the game we all enjoy and love. I strongly believe we need to stand up against these individuals who do not belong in football or any other sport.”
The Middlesbrough defender scored an own goal in Ireland’s 5-1 World Cup play-off defeat at home to Denmark, the visitors’ first of the night and which put them ahead on aggregate after a 0-0 draw in the first game. “We fully support all efforts to stamp out racism from the game and that includes comments targeting players on social media,” said PFA Ireland’s general secretary, Stephen McGuinness.
“The nature of this incident is really shocking. No player should be subjected to that and we hope that the perpetrator is called to account. This incident should serve as a message that racism needs a response from authorities and team-mates. It cannot be ignored.”
Garrett Mullan, a director ofSRTRC, called for social media networks to play a proactive part in weeding out such abuse and also praised McClean for speaking out. The West Bromwich winger had said the comments received by Christie had “really got to a few players”.
“There is no place for racism in sport or on social media,” Mullan said. “We welcome the fact that the FAI and Gardai are taking action but social media outlets also have a role to play in responding to racism.
“[McClean’s] support for his team-mate will help the team and Cyrus in particular, to emerge stronger from this incident.”