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PFA tells footballers to attend anti-racism classes

ABUSE: John Terry was banned four matches for calling Anton Ferdinand a "black c**t" (PA)

MANAGERS OF the country’s 92 league clubs have been informed they are responsible for ensuring players attend anti-racism workshops.

The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) contacted every Premier League and Football League side about their new session offering guidance about what kind of language is acceptable and what constitutes racism.

PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor said: “We need to avoid any embarrassment again after recent cases.”

In its letter to the league managers, the PFA says: “We are looking to arrange this session in the near future and would appreciate you ensuring players attend as a matter of priority.”

The guideline workshop measures come after two turbulent campaigns where cases of racism and claims of abuse have permeated the highest echelons of the game to grassroots level.

High-profile cases include Chelsea’s John Terry being sanctioned by the FA for calling Anton Ferdinand a “black c**t” in October 2012, and Luis Suarez earlier that year banned eight matches for using the term “negrito” to address Patrice Evra.

In addition, the game has been marred by racist abuse hurled from the terraces by fans at the players.

At the beginning of this week a Sunderland fan was banned three years from attending matches after being found guilty of racially abusing Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku when he was playing on loan at West Brom.

The PFA classes will help players learn about racist and other discriminatory terms which are homophobic and demean people with disabilities.

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