28
October
2010

Racism, ethnic discrimination and exclusion of migrants and minorities in sport: the situation in the European Union

Racism and ethnic discrimination in sport have increasingly become a public issue in European sport over the past decades. This report examines the occurrence and different forms of racism, ethnic discrimination and exclusionary practices in sports, focusing on different sports and levels of practice in the EU.

The findings show that despite significant progress made in past years, sport continues to face a number of challenges related to racism and ethnic discrimination. Incidences of racism and ethnic discrimination affect sport at professional as well as at amateur level. Particularly at amateur level, there is reluctance to recognise such incidents. Moreover, few Member States have established effective monitoring systems to record racism and racial discrimination in sport.

The FRA report also highlights the lack of data available showing the occurrence of racist incidents in sport. It emphasises the need to develop effective ways of monitoring such incidents among players, referees and club officials, as well as between or by fans.

Read more in the press release.