COPPA ITALIA
Juventus to investigate racist insults directed at USMNT star Weston McKennie
‘La Vecchia Signora’ have issued a statement relating to ‘discriminatory chants’ from the away end at the end of the Coppa Italia clash in Turin on Tuesday.
With a stark black and white photo image of Juventus and USMNT midfielder Weston McKennie and the message ‘Never Again’, Juventus showed their anger at the racist chanting aimed at the player on Tuesday night.
The Turin based side faced Lazio in the first leg of the Italian Cup semi-finals and in the 89th minute McKennie was substituted by Carlos Alcoraz.
As the midfielder made his was towards the dugout, monkey chants from the away sector housing the travelling Lazio fans are audible with a subsequent video which began to circulate online showcasing the incident as McKennie makes his way from the pitch.
Weston McKennie has been an instrumental figure in the fight against racism. In 2020 he took advantage of his profile and was a key figure in the ‘bianconeri’s’ collaboration with sportswear giant Adidas in a campaign to encourage the eradication of racist acts in the United States.
Juve statement
“Juventus take note of the video circulated on social networks ... from which it would emerge the intonation of discriminatory chants coming from the visiting sector and directed at Weston McKennie during his substitution,” Juve said.
“Following confirmation of the incident by the player, the club communicates that it has activated all procedures aimed at verifying what happened and will fully cooperate in order to identify the persons responsible,” the statement added.
The McKennie is the latest chapter in a concerning trend in soccer across the continent and follows a double incident in Spain last weekend when Getafe fans chanted ‘mono’ (monkey) at Sevilla player Marcos Acuña and taunted head coach Quique Sanchez Flores with chants of ‘gypsy’.
Later that evening, a third tier game was abandoned as Rayo Majadahonda players refused to continue as a mark of solidarity with goalkeeper Cheikh Sarr after the Senegalese player was subject to racist taunts from local Sestao fans with the keeper confronting the perpetrators and receiving a red card for his actions.