Police have confirmed they are investigating after four Premier League players experienced online racial abuse at the weekend.
Burnley midfielder Hannibal Mejbri and Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana both received racist abuse on Instagram after Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
On Sunday, Wolves striker Tolu Arokodare and Sunderland winger Romaine Mundle were also targeted for abuse on social media.
The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) said on Monday it has “launched a number of investigations” after receiving four separate reports of online racial abuse.
On Monday, Police Scotland said it was investigating after Rangers players Emmanuel Fernandez and Djeidi Gassama shared screenshots of racist abuse aimed at them on their social media accounts after Sunday’s match at Livingston.
“There is absolutely no place for racial abuse, either online or in person, and anyone who believes they can hide behind their keyboards should think again,” said chief constable Mark Roberts, who is the head of the UKFPU.
“The UKFPU condemns this abhorrent behaviour and we will ensure that, through our dedicated team of officers, we do everything possible to identify those responsible and bring them to justice.”
Anti-discrimination group Kick It Out said reports of online abuse are at record levels, increasing by a third compared to the same point last season.
Mike Ankers, UKFPU deputy director, told BBC Radio 5 Live said the police unit has seen an increase of about 115% in the number of reports.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s official spokesman also described the abuse as “abhorrent”, adding: “The Prime Minister has supported footballers before who have had the courage to come forward and call out discrimination and racism and this is no different.
“Premier League clubs have said they want to work with social media sites, including Meta, the Premier League and the police to identify those responsible.
“And Meta has said that it will continue to work to protect people from abuse. Ministers will be holding them to account to ensure it happens.”
A police statement said: “As the law enforcement lead for online abuse connected to football, the UKFPU will be working closely with all the football clubs and their players to help identify the people responsible.
“Over recent months the UKFPU have seen a number of successful prosecutions for online racial abuse, which have resulted in significant football banning orders.
“However, we recognise that there is always more to do, and we will continue to work closely with Ofcom, English football authorities, and social media platforms to tackle the issue.”
Responding to the Fofana and Mejbri abuse, a spokesperson for Meta, which owns platforms including Instagram, told BBC Sport: “No-one should be subjected to racist abuse, and we remove this content when we find it.
“No one thing will stop racist behaviour overnight, but we’ll continue working to protect our community from abuse and co-operate with police investigations.”
Last November, a BBC investigation found more than 2,000 extremely abusive social media posts – including death and rape threats – were sent about managers and players in the Premier League and Women’s Super League in a single weekend.
The season-opening Premier League game between Liverpool and Bournemouth in August was stopped after then-Cherries forward Antoine Semenyo reported being racially abused by someone in the Anfield crowd.
A man has denied the abuse and his trial is scheduled to take place in April.
In January, Newcastle United said they had contacted police after midfielder Joe Willock was the subject of “disgusting” racial abuse and “deeply disturbing threats” on social media.
Tottenham forward Mathys Tel was also the subject of racist abuse on social media after being one of two Spurs players to miss in their Super Cup penalty shootout defeat by Paris St-Germain in August.
England defender Jess Carter was another target of racist abuse during Euro 2025 in July.
And England internationals Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were all subjected to racism in the aftermath of the Euro 2020 final, which the Three Lions lost to Italy in a penalty shootout.
Kick It Out said it had been an “appalling weekend” but stressed it was not a one-off situation, stating that “the sad fact is, we know it happens regularly”.
It said there has been a 45% increase in the overall number of reports it has received online and across the game’s professional and grassroots levels at this point in the season.
Online incidents accounted for the highest proportion of reports (38%), Kick It Out said.
The organisation’s chief executive, Samuel Okafor, called on social media companies to take stronger action.
“They have the technical capabilities to be able to provide their platform so it is free from discrimination and they’re choosing not to,” Okafor said.
Meta has previously said it has taken a number of steps to stop abuse taking place, including removing offensive comments.
Okafor believes there is a clear explanation for why the number of cases has increased.
He said: “I think it’s fans not wanting to put up with it, it’s players having the courage to call it out, and also an element of the political climate we’re in, which is emboldening people to say things they wouldn’t have said previously.”
UKFPU’s Ankers said police would work to ensure those aiming racist abuse do not feel they are “safe hiding behind their keyboards”.
He said: “We do a lot of work proactively with clubs through the dedicated football officers, with the players themselves and our key stakeholders to make sure they actually feel confident that when they do report something that we’re going to do something about it.
“That’s really important, and I think the increase also shows, not just that they feel confident, but I actually think there are a number of players that we are seeing that are prepared to actually stand up and have the courage to speak out, and that they are just fed up of being expected to receive his type of abuse.”
