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Milan display Martin Luther King quote in racism protest

AC Milan brought their match with Bologna to a brief halt on Saturday, summoning inspiration from American civil rights icon Martin Luther King to demonstrate solidarity with goalkeeper Mike Maignan who was racially abused last weekend.

Published: 28 January 2024 16:10 CET

Milan display Martin Luther King quote in racism protest

A quote by by Martin Luther King is displayed in support of AC Milan's French goalkeeper #16 Mike Maignan. Photo: Piero CRUCIATTI/AFP.

The fixture was stopped in the 16th minute in honour of Maignan’s shirt number while a famous King quote was displayed on the San Siro’s big screens.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that,” read the message. Fans held up their phone lights while warm applause spread across the stands at the stadium.

France international Maignan was abused by Udinese fans last weekend, an incident that made international headlines despite similar episodes being a regular occurence in Italian football.

Udinese have banned a small number of supporters identified as having racially insulted Maignan, but they are appealing a one-match stadium closure handed down as punishment.

The Udinese match was not the first time that Maignan has been racially abused by supporters in Italy after he was targeted by a Juventus fan in September 2021.

Last weekend the 28-year-old challenged Italy’s football authorities by saying that “if you do nothing, you will also be complicit”.

Italy, a country governed by a coalition led by the far-right Brothers of Italy party, is rife with fascist football fan groups, in particular among the hardcore “ultras” who make most of the atmosphere at stadiums.

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FIFA president condemns 'abhorrent' racism during football match in Italy

The head of the world governing body said there was no place for discrimination of any kind in football or broader society.

“The events that took place in Udine and Sheffield on Saturday are totally abhorrent and completely unacceptable,” he said in a statement.

“The players affected by Saturday’s events have my undivided support.”

READ ALSO: UN committee warns Italy over racist abuse in football

Fans aimed monkey chants at AC Milan and France goalkeeper Mike Maignan during Milan’s dramatic 3-2 win at Udinese, with the game temporarily halted.

Coventry midfielder Kasey Palmer accused Sheffield Wednesday fans of doing the same towards him during their English Championship clash, which his team won 2-1.

“We need all the relevant stakeholders to take action, starting with education in schools so that future generations understand that this is not part of football or society,” Infantino said.

“As well as the three-step process (match stopped, match re-stopped, match abandoned), we have to implement an automatic forfeit for the team whose fans have committed racism and caused the match to be abandoned as well as worldwide stadium bans and criminal charges for racists.

READ ALSO: Why do Italian football fans get away with racially abusing black players?

“FIFA and football shows full solidarity to victims of racism and any form of discrimination. Once and for all: No to racism! No to any form of discrimination!”

At Udinese, referee Fabio Maresca stopped play during the first half and a livid Maignan stormed down the tunnel with his teammates.

“They’re ignorant people…. You can be booed or whistled when you’re away from home, that’s normal, but what happened today has no place in football,” Maignan told Sky Sports.

Play resumed after about five minutes.

Italy, a country governed by a coalition led by the far-right Brothers of Italy party, is rife with fascist football fan groups, in particular among the hardcore “ultras” who make most of the atmosphere at stadiums.

Last week Lazio were hit with a one-match stand closure after supporters directed monkey chants at Romelu Lukaku during their team’s Italian Cup win over local rivals Roma.

In Sheffield, Palmer labelled the abuse “abhorrent and wholly unacceptable”, with the match paused as the referee spoke to both managers on the touchline.

In a statement, Sheffield Wednesday said they were “shocked and saddened by the racist gesture from the stands reported by Sky Blues player Kasey Palmer”.

“Both clubs roundly condemn any form of discrimination and abuse, and underline that there is no place for this kind of behaviour in football or our wider society,” it added.

“We will work together with the relevant authorities and anyone proven to be culpable will face the strictest possible sanctions from both Sheffield Wednesday and the law.”

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