Manchester United launch new campaign aimed at cracking down on racism and discrimination

‘We read the comments, we feel the HATRED’: Manchester United launch campaign to tell fans ‘your inaction has a consequence’, asking them to report racist abuse and hailing club’s ‘diverse history’ after Fred and Anthony Martial faced attacks online

  • A number of Manchester United players have been subjected to vile racist abuse 
  • The club have unveiled a new campaign aimed at eradicating discrimination 
  • As part of SEE RED, United urged fans to report abuse and think about diversity 
  • An online reporting system has been created to allow racist abuse to be logged 

Manchester United have launched a campaign urging supporters to report racist abuse after a sickening spate of comments saw a number of players targeted.

The new initative, named SEE RED, has been designed to help combat racism and discrimination in football – and was kickstarted with a powerful video.

The footage has challenged the club’s fanbase to think about where United would be without diversity and also warned them that their inaction ‘has a consequence.’ 

Manchester United have launched a new campaign urging supporters to report racist abuse

An online reporting system, which will enable fans to log abuse, has recently been formed and can be accessed via manutd.com/seered.

It has been described as ‘user-friendly’ – and United will work with the Premier League to ‘escalate’ complaints to social media platforms and the authorities.

A number of iconic moments throughout the club’s rich history have been shown in the video – including goals from Marcus Rashford, Andy Cole and Jesse Lingard.

A powerful video released by the club has challenged supporters to think hard about diversity

A powerful video released by the club has challenged supporters to think hard about diversity

Also included are memorable highlights from the likes of Dwight Yorke, Rio Ferdinand, Lauren James and Ji-sung Park. 

‘Sadly, footballers across the country continue to receive abuse online, seemingly without fear of censure,’ Richard Arnold, Group Managing Director, said.

‘United has been, and always will be, a club for all. We do not believe real fans are racist and today, we call on those fans to join us in the battle against discrimination.’

Former United defender Ferdinand shared the announcement of the new campaign on Twitter and said: ‘Liking this from @ManUtd.’ 

The clip has highlighted key moments in the club's history created by black and Asian players

The clip has highlighted key moments in the club’s history created by black and Asian players

The initiative is supported by a new online reporting system where the fanbase can log abuse

The initiative is supported by a new online reporting system where the fanbase can log abuse

It has also been revealed that the SEE RED message will feature prominently at Old Trafford for the rest of the campaign behind closed doors.

The large seat wraps, which have been visible during games in the lower tiers of the ground, will be replaced with a new design to support the demand for change. 

SEE RED adds to United’s All Red All Equal campaign, which was launched in 2016 and highlights the club’s work to strive for equality and diversity. 

A host of United stars, including Fred and Anthony Martial, have been racially abused online

A host of United stars, including Fred and Anthony Martial, have been racially abused online

Fred was targeted with monkey emojis and sickening racist comments after making a mistake

Fred was targeted with monkey emojis and sickening racist comments after making a mistake

Several United players, such as Rashford, Martial, Fred and Axel Tuanzebe have been subjected to vile racist messages on social media in recent months.

The UK’s football policing lead, Detective Chief Constable Mark Roberts, said last month that the response of platforms in assisting the police has been ‘woeful’.

A spokesperson for Facebook, which owns Instagram, has said the company will ‘continue to work with the police’ to ‘collectively tackle this issue’.