People found guilty of online racist abuse against footballers will be banned from attending games for up to 10 years under new UK laws.
“This summer we saw the beautiful game marred by disgraceful racism from online trolls, who hid behind their keyboards and abused our footballers,” Britain’s Home Secretary Priti Patel was quoted as saying by British media on Friday.
“Those responsible for appalling racist abuse online must be punished. The changes to the law I am announcing will make sure they are banned from attending football matches.”
Football Banning Orders, imposed to prevent violence or disorder at regulated matches, bar individuals from attending games for a minimum of three and a maximum of 10 years.
The new law will be brought forward early in the new year, British media reported, in the form of an amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.
The existing legislation will be extended to cover online hate offences after Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed aimed at England’s Black players following defeat in the Euro 2020 final.
According to government statistics, there were 1,359 football banning orders in force across England and Wales as of August 1.
READ MORE: Euro 2020: England’s black players face racist abuse
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