Enzo Fernandez and other Argentinian players sang a racist song about France after their Copa America final win, and the most telling thing about the film is the sound you hear at the end.
“Corta (el) vivo,” someone said, “stop live streaming.”
they know. They know what they are talking about. They know what they say is deeply offensive, and they know what will happen if outsiders hear it.
This is not one of those things that can be equivocated. This is not something that can be denied. The lyrics are clear and we know them because the song has been around for several years.
The slogan read: “They play for France, but their parents are from Angola. Their mother is from Cameroon and their father is from Nigeria. But their passports are written in French.”
The song comes from a song written by a group of Argentinian fans ahead of the 2022 World Cup final, which was labeled an “expression of far-right ideology” by French anti-racism protesters at the time.
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Frankly, it’s bad enough that Argentina didn’t seek to distance themselves further from the song after their World Cup victory, but the fact that the players seemed to have incorporated the song into their celebrations is Worse. If nothing else, it speaks to an unpleasant collective mentality and pervasive culture that a group of players in moments of victory would choose this song as part of their celebrations.
It’s also worth noting that transphobia is at play here, without wishing to diminish blatant racism. The song’s full lyrics refer to French players as “cometravas like Kylian Mbappe”. “Cometravas” is a slang term that essentially translates to “people who have sex with transgender people.”
Overall, the football community has taken positive steps to make the sport more welcoming to LGBTQ+ people. Thankfully, players who actively choose not to engage in anti-homophobia campaigns are few and far between, and those who do are often punished – such as Monaco midfielder Mohamed Kamara, who wore an anti-homophobia cover-up on his jersey last season. Suspended after homophobic messages.
However, things like this song do nothing to help the effort to make football more inclusive and, in fact, actively harm that effort.
But if the song itself and the gleeful willingness of the players involved in singing it weren’t frustrating enough, the consequences are almost as bad.
Fernandez himself issued an apology of sorts, claiming that he was “caught up in the excitement of the America’s Cup celebrations” and that the song did not “reflect my character or beliefs”. He also said quite ridiculously, “I oppose all forms of discrimination.” All we can say is that his words will ring hollow when he is inevitably forced to engage in some kind of anti-racism movement in the coming weeks and months.
Chelsea themselves reacted in a rather responsible manner, issuing a statement outlining their position and values, saying they would use this as an “opportunity to educate” and that they had initiated an internal disciplinary process.
It will be interesting to see how this process plays out, because if Fernandes were a fan and was caught singing the song in the stands at Stamford Bridge, he would face the ugly end of a rather lengthy stadium ban.
Other than that, things have been pretty quiet.
French Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana called it “unchecked racism.” The club’s Ivorian forward David Datro Fofana said in a statement on Instagram that “racism in all its forms should be condemned in the strongest possible terms” and that “everyone involved in the sport needs to take it seriously Treating the fight against racism”.
David Datro Fofana also condemned the incident (Craig Mercer/MB Media/Getty Images)
This is the last point that feels most relevant. Because beyond those two responses, plus a photo Nicholas Jackson posted of Fernandez hugging a black child (the meaning of which is open to interpretation), there wasn’t much else.
So far, only black players have publicly acknowledged the incident. No white players condemned the song. Maybe some of Fofana’s white teammates offered personal support, but as it stands, there’s nothing more.
As we all know, it’s frustrating that Black players are left to do the emotional work, carrying the mental baggage of having to deal with racist incidents. It reinforces the idea that racism is only a black problem, but a scourge that shames us all. It isolates black players and shows that it’s not something others need to worry about.
Imagine the power of a white performer standing up and spontaneously denouncing this song. It will provide a valuable symbol, but it will be more than just a superficial thing. It will have real imports.
At the time of writing, the clubs of the other players featured in the film have decided not to comment. To be fair, it’s a little tricky to pinpoint who’s singing in the film, but everyone seems to be doing their best to ignore the issue entirely.
Maybe we can trust them and say that, when the time comes, they will speak to the Argentinian players and remind them of their responsibilities – not as footballers or club representatives, but as human beings. But for now, it seems they just want the whole thing to go away.
Even if it’s difficult to identify the person singing it, anyone sitting in silence while such a racist song is sung probably needs to at least have a conversation. Of course, we can at least expect the club to acknowledge the incident, that they will investigate and if any of their players are found to have been involved, they will face appropriate punishment.
Chelsea are the only club to have spoken out so far, but that’s not to say we should give them extra credit for that: after all, there’s no way they could have avoided it.
But elsewhere, crickets. Despite all of UEFA’s glossy promotional campaigns and well-intentioned initiatives, and its solemn “Say No to Racism” video, in moments like this, where much of the game is marked by silence, football seriously strikes down Racist ideas are difficult to take seriously.
(Header photo: Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
