@Mascot88 Definitely a sense of xenophobia, and not strictly limited to football, however one has to be careful in limiting that just to racism though? I mean, if Johnny Foreigner were biased against then we'd see the results in most sanctions coming out and not just those for racism. Then of course, given the cosmopolitan nature of the English game, foreign players make up a larger percentage of players than local ones so if sanctions for foreigners are more prevalent than those for local players is that not perhaps a natural by product of the majority of players being foreign. I would be wary of attributing the nature of Suarez' punishment to only simply being Johnny Foreigner.
The most telling bit of the difference between Terry and Suarez is not necessarily the respective bans, which was disproportionate, but also the reaction amongst fans across England who had fuck all to do with both players:
'We know what you are,
We know what you aaaaaaaare,
Luis Suarez, we know what you are'
Putting John Terry in there would fit in quite seamlessly but it didn't happen, did it? Suarez was subjected to that every game, home (by away fans) and away. He was labelled a cheat, a diver, a stain on humanity. A lesser character would have broke. He used it to fuel the spectacular then left.
Just to go back to Johnny Foreigner in the context of being mocked here and to use Gerrard again. This is obviously not a racist incident but it is relevant in my view. Liverpool are on the brink of glory. A man who is Liverpool personified but also Captain of England cruelly slips to watch his dreams fade. So, what does the country do? Stand by the man who is one of the best produced by them? Console the man who has also given *them* sterling service and much to be proud of? No, he is subject to derision and mockery at every single home and away game by the very fans who cheered him when he still had an England shirt on. The exact same 'banter' that Suarez had to put up with minus the cheat.
John Terry somehow managed to combine both of what happened to Suarez and Gerrard while shagging his team mates wife at the same time; he who was banned and fined for racist abuse and who slipped to lose his team the European Cup final went about the business of his career in grand, uninterrupted and serene fashion with barely so much as a reminder of his indiscretions and got a guard of honour and a royal sending off in the 26th minute of his last game.
Can anybody really say that some sort of bias against Liverpool is nonexistent? The evidence may be circumstantial, like what I noted above, but surely the pure weight of circumstantial lends itself some sort of credence. There is never going to be a smoking gun or a signed memo but surely the disproportionate number of random incidents when put together over time, and the outrageous vilification amongst rival fans that we get whenever it seems that we are sticking our head above the parapet again, gives one some pause at least?
Some people want to be biased against as it can be a crutch for their own failings, that is undoubtably true. However, at at the same time some people think that is the only explanation for someone to perceive bias against them and are according dismissive of the aggrieved. There is actually a middle ground where bias exists without iron clad evidence to dispel it that does not have to be disparaged or be entirely dismissed and that murky trench is exactly where we fall into. IMO, of course.
*edit* grammar
