MANCHESTER, England – For two weeks, Premier League players have knelt before games, demonstrating their support for the Black Lives Matter movement to millions of viewers worldwide. His peers in the Bundesliga had done the same. In Spain, Italy and the United States, players have followed suit.
The protests have made it clear that players do not believe soccer is immune to the kind of systemic inequalities that brought millions to the streets.
On Monday, a study cast doubt on another aspect of football that doesn’t appear to be a level playing field.
According to research by RunRepeat and published by the Association of Professional Footballers, the players’ union in England and Wales, the difference in the way European football commentators describe black and white players is stark.
Documenting an issue that gamers have long lamented, researchers found that broadcast commentators were not only much more likely to praise white players for their intelligence, leadership qualities, and versatility, but they were also much more likely. to criticize black players for what they considered absence. of those attributes.
Instead, the study found that non-white players tend to receive praise for their physical qualities: what Romelu Lukaku, the Inter Milan striker, has called the “element of rhythm and power.” Black players were four times more likely to be discussed than their white counterparts in terms of their strength, and seven times more likely to be praised for their speed.
Those were not the only differences. White players, according to the study, were more likely to be credited with an admirable work ethic. The performances of black players, even when they were stellar, were more likely to be attributed to an explosion in good shape.
“Commentators help shape our perception of each player, deepening the racial biases the viewer already has,” said Jason Lee, PFA equality education executive. “It is important to consider how far-reaching these perceptions can be and how they impact footballers even after they finish their playing careers.”
“If a player aspires to become a coach or manager, are players referred to regularly by commentators as smart and hard-working being given an unfair advantage, when those views seem to be the result of racial bias?”
The PFA study examined more than 2,000 commentator comments, relative to 643 players, and spanned 80 games, across the main divisions of Italy, Spain, England and France, this season.
The study is not the first of its kind. Academics James Rada and Tim Wulfemeyer analyzed racial descriptors in a 2005 article that looked at televised college sports in the United States.
“Portraying African Americans as naturally athletic or gifted with God-given athletics exacerbates the stereotype,” they wrote, “by creating the impression of a lazy athlete, one who does not have to work at his craft.”
The PFA study found that when analyzing events in the game, such as the accuracy of a shot or a pass, commentators spread their praise and criticism evenly between white and non-white players: There was no bias, he concluded, when evaluating events. real.
However, the bias leaked out by discussing players more generally. As Rada and Wulfmeyer discovered, the “brain versus physical strength” stereotype held, even when it came to elite soccer in 2020. White players were praised and black players most frequently criticized for their quality and ability to adapt to different roles, and black players were singled out. for their physical strengths, rather than their mental ones.
Players have noticed. Manchester City striker Raheem Sterling, among others, has spoken of the need to ensure greater representation of black players in managerial and executive positions. But they are also aware of how it is spoken during broadcasts.
“It is never about my ability when compared to other strikers,” Lukaku said in an interview with The New York Times last year. “My individual dribble is good. I can take a step forward. I can beat a player. I remember a comment from a journalist that United should not sign Lukaku because he is not a ‘smart’ footballer. “
Efforts to focus attention on unequal treatment have increased in the weeks since European football has returned to the field since its suspension due to the coronavirus. Players in Germany, the United States and elsewhere have paid tribute to George Floyd, the black man killed while in police custody in Minnesota last month, and a group of Premier League captains led an initiative that has seen all Players kneel before games while wearing shirts with “Black Lives Matter” printed where their names would normally appear.
On Monday, the PFA, Premier League, and English Football League announced a new program that they said would increase the number of black, Asian, and ethnic minority players, or BAME, who move from playing races to training positions on time. full. According to a recent BBC survey, only six of the 92 managers in England’s four main divisions are not white men.
“The PFA is proud to support a diverse membership in the field,” said the organization’s executive director, Gordon Taylor, “and we are determined to ensure that this also translates into substantial representation of BAME in all other areas of the game”.
