FIFA dismisses Brewster racism complaint from U-17 World Cup final

Joe Wright

FIFA dismisses Brewster racism complaint from U-17 World Cup final image

FIFA has dismissed a claim made by Rhian Brewster that team-mate Morgan Gibbs-White was racially abused by a Spanish player during the Under-17 World Cup final.

Brewster claimed in an interview with The Guardian in December that Wolves youngster Gibbs-White was subjected to a discriminatory comment by an opponent in England's 5-2 win in Kolkata.

An investigation was opened in January but FIFA's Disciplinary Committee has dismissed all charges, citing "a lack of sufficient evidence that could corroborate the English player's claim".

"Despite the absence of a sanction, which can only be imposed on the basis of clear evidence, the Disciplinary Committee would like to restate FIFA's unequivocal, zero-tolerance stance against all forms of discrimination, as enshrined in the FIFA Statutes," it added in a statement.

In March, UEFA dropped charges against Spartak Moscow after Brewster alleged he was racially abused during Liverpool's Youth League clash in Russia, again citing a lack of evidence.

Meanwhile, FIFA has fined Benfica, Sporting CP, Rayo Vallecano and Qatar's Al Arabi for breaching rules relating to third-party influence.

Celta Vigo were also punished for entering into an agreement with Benfica that enabled the Portuguese club "to influence [Celta's] independence". Further charges against Benfica were dropped.

 

Joe Wright

Joe Wright Photo

Joe is a Senior Editor at Sporting News. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has reported live on some of the biggest games in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup final at the end of a month in Russia.