Racism in Football

[Vialli98]

It's from the last world cup.

Interestingly in the comment sections there seems to be a big divide between native Africans and people with African heritage who live in European countries. The latter are massively offended, whereas the former pretty much agree with the chant. They see the French players as betraying their African heritage to play for a Colonial power because they can make more money.

Yes some Africans say they believe European players with African heritage are betraying their heritage by choosing to represent a European country. In my experience, it's often born out of bitterness because a top player who qualified to play for their specific country chose to represent France or whatever. It would be a pretty huge deal for Algeria, for example, had Benzema played for them all these years - more World Cup appearances and most likely more AFCON success, so you can see why the bitterness is there.

The existence of these rather fringe African views doesn't excuse the Argentines chanting a racist chant however. I know you're not saying that, but it's worth pointing out in this thread anyway because people too often use these African jokes about French players' heritage as a reason to give blanket pardons to the Argentinian NT.

 

[KS55]

I’m qualified for both England and Wales. If only I could play football….

 

[Bigga]

I'm not saying it wasn't racist, I was just explaining what the intention of the song was, understanding, more than anyone here, the idiosyncrasy of Argentinian football chants. Also, being bilingual, realizing what is lost in translation and sounds worse than it actually was intended in Argentinian slang.


Spoken like a true xenophobe.

Full disclosure; I haven't heard the whole song. But, from what I believe, the song singles out the Black players of France. If this is not the case, I apologise.

However, if this IS the case, are you defending the chants as being the "idiosyncrasy of Argentina"??

I'm reading your comments and don't quite understand where you stand with it.

 

[Bigga]

You must be fucking stupid then

I wasn't making any conclusions, I was making an observation.

It's not me that's "stupid".

"Stupid" would be tying a totally irrelevant 'observation' to this particular issue... which was your particular 'observation. If you haven't drawn a conclusion, what the point of the diversion for something you seem not to understand.

 

[River Plate]

Full disclosure; I haven't heard the whole song. But, from what I believe, the song singles out the Black players of France. If this is not the case, I apologise.

However, if this IS the case, are you defending the chants as being the "idiosyncrasy of Argentina"??

I'm reading your comments and don't quite understand where you stand with it.

I'm not defending the chant at all, it's ignorant, racist and transphobic. I'm just giving context and trying to explain why a person singing said song doesn't automatically make him a racist or transphobe.

90% of Argentinian football chants have some kind of homophobic/xenophobic/classist/racist remarks, or idiolizes violence and/or drugs.

At the game I might sing something like "tonight we are getting f*cked up and gonna kill those bosteros (boca juniors fans) f*gg*ts" yet I don't do drugs, I have never killed nobody, I'm not homophobic and have lots of boca junior friends. It is just something that you say on a specific context but that you don't actually believe or condone at all.

It would be like saying all 90's rappers are homophobic because they used the F word. In Latin America, the PC culture isn't as big as it is in Europe and the US.

 

[mancityvstoke]

Football chants being abusive ?

Who knew

 

[Bigga]

I'm not defending the chant at all, it's ignorant, racist and transphobic. I'm just giving context and trying to explain why a person singing said song doesn't automatically make him a racist or transphobe.

90% of Argentinian football chants have some kind of homophobic/xenophobic/classist/racist remarks, or idiolizes violence and/or drugs.

At the game I might sing something like "tonight we are getting f*cked up and gonna kill those bosteros (boca juniors fans) f*gg*ts" yet I don't do drugs, I have never killed nobody, I'm not homophobic and have lots of boca junior friends. It is just something that you say on a specific context but that you don't actually believe or condone at all.

It would be like saying all 90's rappers are homophobic because they used the F word. In Latin America, the PC culture isn't as big as it is in Europe and the US.

Thanks for responding.

Just for context 90s rappers WERE homophobic, using that word, but it's a culture that had to be unlearned.

I hope the same can be said of the national team.

 

[River Plate]

Thanks for responding.

Just for context 90s rappers WERE homophobic, using that word, but it's a culture that had to be unlearned.

I hope the same can be said of the national team.

To me there's a huge difference between ignorantly having discriminatory actions (which absolutely all of us have had at some point of our lives) vs being a true bigot.

Nowadays, the true bigots are probably the most PC of all. They will never say anything out of place in public but in their privacy be the biggest pieces of sh*t.

 

[Bigga]

To me there's a huge difference between ignorantly having discriminatory actions (which absolutely all of us have had at some point of our lives) vs being a true bigot.

Nowadays, the true bigots are probably the most PC of all. They will never say anything out of place in public but in their privacy be the biggest pieces of sh*t.

I completely agree with what you say about bigots, yes.

However, if you hear the words, understand the words and sing the words of a song/ chant you know is discriminatory it's YOU, the individual, making an active choice to participate. That, no longer, becomes 'ignorant', but wilful.

Nobody can force you to take part.

 

[Vialli98]

I completely agree with what you say about bigots, yes.

However, if you hear the words, understand the words and sing the words of a song/ chant you know is discriminatory it's YOU, the individual, making an active choice to participate. That, no longer, becomes 'ignorant', but wilful.

Nobody can force you to take part.

The fact that this isn't a new chant, and it's one that's been going since 2022, completely washes away any excuses about ignorance.