Prince William addresses ‘abhorrent’ racism faced by youth soccer club

Prince William expressed his support to a youth soccer club that experienced racism on the field.

According to news reports by Sky News, Prince of Wales, 40, sent a letter to Alpha United Juniors in Bradford, England, saying he was “deeply concerned” about the situation.

“Racism and abuse has no place in our society. Abhorrent behaviour of this nature must stop now and all those responsible be held to account,” William wrote to Alpha United Juniors.

The royal, who has served as president of the FA since 2005, confirmed he's contacted The Football Association (FA), the governing body of soccer in England, about the claims, after the chair of Alpha United reached out to Kensington Palace about feeling frustrated with the local FA chapter's investigation.

The outlet reported that Mohammed Waheed, chair of Alpha United, wrote to the palace in January, and Prince William sent the letter last month. The outlet said that the club first spoke out in November, “revealing how for years players as young as seven, have been on the receiving end of slurs and even threats of violence from the sidelines.”

Prince William has previously denounced racism in soccer at the game’s highest level. In July 2021, he spoke out after Team England players Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho were overwhelmed with online attacks after they missed penalty kicks that helped secure Italy’s win in the Euro 2020 final.