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Prince William is “sickened” by the racist abuse England players have received following Sunday’s UEFA Euro 2020 final. In a personal tweet on Monday, the Duke of Cambridge, who is president of the Football Association, tweeted, “I am sickened by the racist abuse aimed at England players after last night’s match.”
“It is totally unacceptable that players have to endure this abhorrent behaviour. It must stop now and all those involved should be held accountable. W,” the Queen’s grandson continued.
According to the BBC, players Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho were targeted on social media after they missed penalty kicks. The Football Association released a statement saying, “We strongly condemn all forms of discrimination and are appalled by the online racism that has been aimed at some of our England players on social media. We could not be clearer that anyone behind such disgusting behaviour is not welcome in following the team.”
“We will do all we can to support the players affected while urging the toughest punishments possible for anyone responsible. We will continue to do everything we can to stamp discrimination out of the game, but we implore government to act quickly and bring in the appropriate legislation so this abuse has real life consequences,” the statement continued. “Social media companies need to step up and take accountability and action to ban abusers from their platforms, gather evidence that can lead to prosecution and support making the platforms free from this type of abhorrent abuse.”
Prince William attended Sunday’s game at Wembley Stadium with the Duchess of Cambridge and their eldest son, Prince George . The Duke called the loss “heartbreaking,” but congratulated Italy on their win. “Heartbreaking. Congratulations @Azzurri on a great victory,” the royal dad of three tweeted after the match. “@England, you’ve all come so far, but sadly this time it wasn’t our day. You can all hold your heads high, and be so proud of yourselves — I know there’s more to come. W.”