Rotherham United FC say they are working with South Yorkshire Police to investigate an incident of online racist abuse following Thursday night’s fixture with Cardiff City.
The Millers lost 2-1 last night, a result which sees them sliding towards the championship relegation zone, and matters got worse when a number of social media posts containing racist language were brought to the clubs attention.
In a statement released by the South Yorkshire club they said: “Rotherham United totally condemns the actions of the aforementioned individual and would like to firmly reiterate our zero tolerance policy towards racism or discrimination of any kind.”
Social media use has been in the spotlight in recent years, especially after the European Championship final in 2021 where England players, Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho were subjected to abhorrent abuse shortly following England’s penalty shootout loss to Italy.
Yesterday Grimsby Town also released a statement regarding social media abuse and told fans that some behaviour is “in legal terms, harassment and is something that the club condemns in the strongest terms. Harassment and discrimination of any sort, whether it’s face to face or through social media platforms, will not be tolerated.”
Rotherham say that they “totally and completely dissociates itself from the actions of this individual and the abhorrent behaviour that they have displayed and will take the necessary measures to ensure that this isolated incident does not tarnish the reputation of Rotherham United and our fan base.”
The investigation now lies with the club and the police, with further actions set to be disclosed at a later date.