England fan admits abusing players after Euro 2020 loss

A football fan who blamed three black England players for the Euro 2020 final defeat in a racist social media post has admitted abusing the stars.

Scott McCluskey, 43, posted the comments on Facebook shortly after the penalty shoot-out loss to Italy.

Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho all missed penalties.

McCluskey, of Cheshire, was given a 14-week jail sentence, suspended for 18 months, with 30 days of rehabilitation work on racism and diversity.

He pleaded guilty at Warrington Magistrates' Court to sending an offensive or abusive message by a public communication network.

Sentencing him, District Judge Nicholas Sanders said: "This sort of online abuse seems to have gained some sort of traction in our society and it is entirely unacceptable.

"It is something which has the capability to cause real harm not just to individuals such as the three footballers concerned but to wider society as a whole.

"This is a foul offence which has far reaching consequences not only for you but the general public."

As the judge passed sentence, the defendant told him: "All I can say is I'm deeply ashamed."

Rashford, Saka and Sancho were all targeted with racist abuse on social media after the final, prompting a widespread debate about racism in both football and society.

The court heard McCluskey posted a racially offensive term about the three footballers online after England's defeat on 11 July.

He blamed the "ethnic players" for the team's exit from the tournament and added "unlucky England".

Prosecutor Simon Green said McCluskey's Facebook post was met with "condemnation and outrage" and was reported by someone who had themselves been affected by racism.

McCluskey, of Blyth Close in Runcorn, claimed he had posted the message to make people laugh, saying "it was a joke" and later deleting the post, but it was reported to Cheshire Police.

He was also ordered to observe a weekend curfew on Saturdays and Sundays, monitored by an electronic tag, and ordered to pay £85 costs and £128 victim surcharge, to be deducted from his benefits.

Jo Lazzari, from the Crown Prosecution Service, thanked one of McCluskey's Facebook "friends" for reporting the abuse.

"One such person saw the status and was taken back to issues with racism she experienced as a child and felt angry, upset and disappointed at having seen such a message in her own home," she said.