The English media are up in arms against racism in football but they’re missing the bigger picture. Racism is just one part of the hate culture ingrained in football and it’s no different in England. Manchester United fans have a repertoire of anti-Scouser chants while opposing fans are known to chant about the Munich air disaster.
I’m not sure how it happened but supporting your team now apparently requires chanting offensive epithets about opponents as well. One Spanish fan simply shrugged it off by noting, “Football is always about insulting the other team,” while one writer claimed unconvincingly it was a logical extension of supporting your own team. The English media may claim racism has been eradicated from English terraces but I don’t think they can rightly claim the moral high ground when English football fans find different ways of expressing their malice.
As for Luis Aragonés, the man who started the furor, I’m confident he will eventually be dismissed from his post though it will undoubtedly be solely for footballing reasons. The Spanish national side, like its English counterpart, is famous for underperforming when it matters and it’s doubtful Aragonés will be able to change that.
And when the time does come for him to be shown the door, it will be his ignominious fate to be remembered for his refusal to simply apologise for an ugly slur against one of the finest footballers of this generation.
