The Premier League reiterated its support for Black Lives Matter (BLM) yesterday which it insisted was not political, although it did concede that they were “aware of the risk posed by groups that seek to hijack popular causes and campaigns”. The Premier League league issued a statement after the leagues chief executive Richard Masters was questioned by the Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) Committee about its support for the BLM movement.
At this hearing Mr Masters defended all those involved with the Premier League who wore ‘Black Lives Matter’ on their shirts, describing the cause as a moral one, rather than a political one. A Premier League statement that followed Mr Masters’ appearance at DCMS said “The Premier League offered this backing as we wholly agree with the players’ single objective of eradicating racial prejudice wherever it exists”.
One group, associated with Black Lives Matter is ‘UKBLM’ which has raised more than £1 million through a GoFundMe appeal, calls for the dismantling of capitalism, has tweeted about defunding the police and made a series of social media posts about issues concerning the Israel and Palestinian situation. The Premier League statement went on to say “We are aware of the risk posed by groups that seek to hijack popular causes and campaigns to promote their own political views. These actions are entirely unwelcome and are rejected by the Premier League and all other professional football bodies, and they underline the importance of our sport coming together to declare a very clear position against prejudice. We want our message to be a positive one that recognises football has the power to bring people together”.
At the DCMS hearing the Conservative MP Steve Brine stated that the league’s support for the BLM movement appeared to mark a shift from its previous opposition to political messages in football. Mr Brine MP cited the example of when Arsenal distanced themselves from Mesut Ozil’s support for the Uighur Muslim population in China as well as when the league fined Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola for wearing a yellow ribbon in support of Catalan independence campaigners.
Mr Brine asked Mr Masters “How did we get from Ozil and Pep to Black Lives Matter, and can the Premier League players and managers now be assured that anything goes if they have a cause that they feel strongly about and the Premier League will not take action against them?”. To this question the chief executive of the Premier League replied, “I think we are living in unprecedented times”.
Current Affairs Correspondent | My name is Oliver Down I am 22, and a staunch brexiteer. I am a Bristolian lad who studied politics in Leicester. I believe in free speech and accurate journalism and I won’t be afraid to give you “the other side” of the story!
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