October 5 – Serie A club Juventus announced Friday that three Parma supporters have been banned from the Allianz Stadium after directing racist abuse at Weston McKennie during the club’s opening match of the Serie A season.
The incident occurred after Juve’s 2-0 victory in August, when USMNT star, McKennie was subjected to taunts while training post-match. Using its ‘state-of-the-art’ surveillance system, the club identified the offenders and imposed stadium bans under its code of conduct.
“Juventus Football Club strongly condemns this serious incident and all forms of racism,” the club said. Those found guilty, it added, will not be allowed to attend any matches “organised by the club,” with bans ranging from three years to life.
In Spain, courts recently imposed jail sentences on supporters who racially abused Real Madrid winger, Vinícius Júnior. In Spain, it is hoped that this landmark ruling sent a powerful message to the bigots…enough is enough.
So, the question now becomes, will Italy follow suit? To date banning a few fans from the stadium has not proved particularly effective, though moving racial abuse into the world of criminal accountability has.
Parma condemned the abuse, saying: “Racial intolerance, or any other type of abusive behaviour, is never tolerated or acceptable.” However there were no words on the supporters in question.
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