Grim rise of violence and hate at youth football matches exposed – see shocking abuse in full

The rising tide of hate and violence at kids football matches is laid bare today with a investigation into the , and that is .

Our investigation has found that nearly two thirds of the most serious cases of crowd trouble investigated by the Association this season is . We have analysed nearly 500 reports from the FA’s disciplinary hearings over the last three years, which reveal the abuse and anger - mostly from parents - which mar youth games, played for fun, across the country every weekend.

READ MORE:

It shows children who are still at primary school being racially abused - with one 11-year-old girl called a “stupid n****r” and a boy the same age a “stupid black b*****d”. Other kids witness terrifying scenes. Recent incidents include one dad threatening to get a hammer from his car and “smash the ref’s head in” at an under 11s game and a father at an under 8s game telling a ref - who was himself under 18 - he was going to “f*****g smash your head in, I don’t give a s**t”.

The FA told us there were 276 serious cases of crowd disorder last season, up 28% in a year. So far this season there have already been 177 upheld. Growing numbers of these are from matches involving under 18s. This was up 45% last year and so far this year nearly two-thirds - 62% - of the most serious cases investigated by the FA were at children’s matches. Among the youngest cases we found involved a team of U7s in where one of the parents abused an opposition coach, saying “he's just a P**i b*****d anyway”.

READ MORE:

England legend Les Ferdinand told the Mirror that our findings were “sad but not surprising” and showed that discrimination “never went away”. He said: “We perhaps don’t see it as much in the and the top tiers due to CCTV but it appears to be pretty rife at the grassroots level. So what you have found does not shock or surprise me. When my son was playing football, I couldn’t believe what other parents were saying. We all want our kids to win a game of football. But it’s just a game of football.

READ MORE:

“Sadly it seems that people still seem to think they can behave at a football game in a way they would never behave on the streets.
“It is concerning to see this behaviour in front of young children. You are not born a racist, you are not born aggressive. It is learned behaviour. It is important this behaviour is tackled because it will fester and spread.”

The FA told us that more cases were being reported and more matches played but that it had introduced a raft of new measures under a four-year plan to ”free” the game of discrimination. This includes a new system of “penalty points” for bad conduct as well as league point deductions, extending a body cams pilot and revamping the punishment of “sinbins”. There is a new FA code of conduct for grassroots football and last month saw the first team - Pan Community First on the Isle of Wight - have its England Football accreditation removed, so it won’t be able to play any fixtures for the rest of the season.

READ MORE:

Up to 1,800 of the “worst disciplined teams” for both youth and adult football have been placed on to the FA’s Behaviour Improvement Programme. An FA spokesperson said: “We strongly condemn any abusive or unacceptable behaviour, either on the pitch or from the sidelines, and we have clear standards of behaviour which we expect all grassroots football clubs, coaches and players to follow. This is a collective responsibility and we welcome and fully support action taken by leagues and clubs to help tackle this unacceptable behaviour in our game.”

was said to be “deeply concerned” after the coach of Bradford youth club Alpha United wrote to Kensington Palace in 2023 to complain about the lack of action from the local FA following "between 50 and 60 cases" of racism. But the abuse has continued. One opposition club was fined £85 after a spectator at an under 16s game used the words “black b*****ds”, and last year a visiting under 14s team was fined £225 after a parents abused Alpha’s referee with the comments “f**k off, you gay P**i” and “F**k off P**i to your Mosque, you f**king terrorist and go blow up someone”. One parent charged at the ref, knocking him to the ground.

READ MORE:

Waheed Mohammed of Alpha said: “The issue we have had in the past, making complaints, is that nothing has happened. But we are as stubborn as hell. It doesn't happen every time we play football, of course not. We are not going to cry racism every time.” 16-year old star striker Zayn Hasaan told us he had never been racially abused before he started playing football aged ten. He said: “Right from when I started, aged 10, some people would call me P**i, once every few games. I got the N-word as well. The better you play, the more you get. Mostly it is the parents, sometimes it is the players too. The first time I heard it, I don't think I told anyone, not even the coaches or my family.”

Zayn believes he was targeted because of his size and skill - he now plays for the under 23s - but said that, after racist abuse of three black England penalty takers at the Euros in 2021, he and his team mates began to take a stand. He said: “You can always walk off the pitch, show that we are not going to stand for this stuff any more. It is not right, it shouldn't be happening.” Alpha coach Zafar Afsar said: “Football is a reflection of society. These kids though, they haven't even been to Pakistan most of them. Their parents are British, they go on holiday to Spain or Turkey. When they hear someone telling them to go back home they don't know what they are on about.”

One Essex club has introduced “respect marshalls” at all home games after a visiting parent was overheard telling under 12s “don’t shake the black kid’s hand”. The 11-year-old victim, who we are not naming, was left in tears. The parent, apparently upset by a challenge towards the end of a game, also threatened to punch the home side’s manager in the face in December 2023. Three witnesses heard the racist comment as the two sides were doing “the customary three cheers and shaking of hands at the end of the game”.

Broomfield manager Andrew Bannister told the FA he “put my arm” around the boy to console him as he was being ignored. When the youngster heard what was said “he was physically crying in his car before leaving for home which for an 11-year-old boy who only wants to play football, is just so sad to see”. Gidea Park were fined £140 after admitting misconduct but not the racist comments.

Broomfield parents have volunteered to act as “respect marshalls” at all home games since September and Jo Sears, head welfare officer, said “it’s working”. She said: “The number of overall incidents has grown year on year on year and we are seeing the same. Enough is enough. We've taken a real positive stance and it's working. We can’t stop individual idiots who are hellbent on being idiots. But it at least lets parents know they are being watched and they should act in a way that facilitates a fun and positive environment for children without fear of being intimidated.”

* Have you experienced abuse at football matches? Email