The Mike Maignan affair is gaining even more momentum since the French goalkeeper was the victim of racist insults in Udine. Former AC Milan player Kevin-Prince Boateng spoke about racism in football: “In 11 years, there have been very few steps taken. I would even say zero steps. It’s not even sad, it’s a shame. I completely understand how Mike felt: “I’m doing my job and should I be forced to hear certain things?” Why do most gamers keep quiet? It’s the world. Everyone thinks about themselves. Many are afraid. Maybe they think I shouldn’t react now, because we lost and it’s not the time, they would tell me to only think about football. I’m freer now that I’ve stopped playing. But the objective is clear and perhaps the breach has opened. A friend of mine, also a former footballer, sent me a long message about this. He said: in 20 years I have never asked you what you felt deep inside, he made me cry”he declared in the columns of La Repubblica.
The low frequency of sanctions and the sometimes too light severity are the main points criticized in Italy and in other countries affected by this scourge in stadiums. For the former Ghanaian international, we must strike hard to make fans understand the seriousness of these acts: “The 3-0 defeat on the green carpet? Of course it’s a solution. If you see your team losing, if you see the match interrupted and the stadium empty, you think twice before doing something stupid like that: it’s the sanctions that really cause harm. And those responsible can be identified with cameras and microphones, I have been saying this since 2013: the nominative ticket allows it, whoever makes a mistake gets out. Among other things, the entire security system benefits: it is enough to deal with racism, but also terrorism”Jérôme’s brother then concluded.
