Italian Professional Footballers Association AIC on Thursday “firmly condemned” the latest incidence of racist abuse by fans.
Lecce players Samuel Umtiti and Lameck Banda were subjected to racist taunts by Lazio fans during the Serie A match between the teams on Wednesday – an incident that led Serie A’s sporting judge to close the Olimpico Lazio ultras stand for one game.
The Rome club also released a statement condemning the racism during the match, which hosts Lecce won 2-1.
“We express our support and unconditional solidarity for the two players in the name of all of us,” said AIC President Umberto Calcagno in a statement.
He called for the sporting authorities to get to the bottom of what had happened as soon as possible and for the application of “the appropriate penalties for the subjects guilty of this serious behavior.”
“These so-called fans have nothing to do with the millions of enthusiasts who follow our sport faithfully,” he added.
Lazio, like many Italian teams, has a significant number of far-right supporters among its fans.
They have been behind a series of shameful acts of racism and anti-Semitism in the past.
There are also groups of Lazio fans that are against racism, such as the Lazio e Liberta’ group, and are trying to combat the stereotype that depicts all the team’s supporters as neo-fascists.
In condemning the abuse, Lazio said that the club had “always combatted every form of racism and discrimination with every means at its disposal, staging initiatives to repress such phenomena, raise the awareness of its fans about these issues and protect its image at the appropriate fora.
“Once again today, SS Lazio condemns those who were the protagonists of this vile, shameful and anachronistic gesture and, as always, will offer total collaboration with the authorities to identify those responsible,” it said.
“Lazio’s fans are not racist and they must not be associated with the handful of individuals who seriously damage the club’s image”.
Inter’s Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku was also allegedly racially abused during the Nerazzurri’s 1-0 win over league leaders Napoli at the San Siro. The sporting judge has opened an inquiry.
