FOOTBALL IS FOREVER EVOLVING
BUILDING A BETTER FUTURE FOR ALL
THE Football Association and The Non-League Paper have teamed up to bring you a series of exclusive columns and features. This month, Chairman of The FA’s Inclusion Advisory Board, the former Luton Town, Aston Villa, Celtic and Chelsea defender Paul Elliott, gives us his views on football’s place in society, its responsibilities and how the game has changed over the years.
OCTOBER is Black History Month. For me, as chair of The FA’s Inclusion Advisory Board (IAB), it’s always a good opportunity to have a dedicated ‘moment’ to look at the impact black and Asian players have had on the game and more broadly what the game is doing to encourage people from all backgrounds to get involved and to combat all forms of discrimination. The FA has a duty of care. We’re here to serve the game and everybody who loves it. Of course, The FA has had its challenges and will continue to be challenged. But the great thing is there’s a strong will and desire to keep improving. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t have that confidence.
Responsibility
I want to make a positive contribution. I’ve got a number of positions at Wembley. I’m an ex-officio on the FA board, I’m on the FA Council, which is the ‘Parliament’ of football, I’m also a member of the Professional Game Board and I represent The FA internationally with UEFA on social responsibility and anti-discrimination. So my hands are full! The IAB’s role is to check and challenge the FA board around the inclusion, diversity and equality agenda – we ensure that runs throughout the veins of the organisation. We’re a support mechanism with specialist practitioners in different areas – equality and diversity, inclusion, disability or faith related issues, LGBT, and the women’s game. Football is such a powerful medium to address so many issues. We try to set the example that The FA is inclusive, it is diverse and in keeping with our message of Football For All. The demographics of society have changed. The FA is clear, and I help lead this agenda, that it’s important the organisation – its structures and values – are reflective of 21st century multi-cultural, multi-racial Britain. I know from my own journey how things have improved. I was a player in the ugly days. I’ve seen the challenges and that side of football. Those days were very difficult. Abuse from fellow players, monkey chants from the opposition, banana throwing – that was across the whole of Europe. It was a society issue. Football was the opportunity for people to maximise their adverse behaviour. I saw it with the challenges I had in Italy when I played for Pisa and in Scotland with Celtic too. They were the challenges playing there, as well as in England in the late 70s early 80s. There was no leadership, no legislation, no real role models to set an example back then. It was lonely place. You only had your fellow brethren. But I used it as motivation. I wasn’t going to let anybody use the colour of my skin to get the better of me. It strengthened my character. I had to be self-motivated. That came from experience and my family background, having come from Jamaica. Experiencing those challenges is why I think I’m well placed to comment on the journey and the brilliant work that is being done across the game. I’ve also seen the evolution and how things have really changed. There has been some brilliant work done across the game, with the FA leading as well as Kick It Out. These groups and individuals are there to challenge The FA to maximise its performance. Wearing my various hats within the structure means I have the best opportunity to work very closely with people to make sure those values are maintained.
Role models
Football does take its responsibilities very seriously. A lot of brilliant work is done across the game. I can’t emphasise that enough. Role models and education are hugely important. We have policy and, of course, sanctions but players have got a bigger and more significant role to play than ever before. Engagement is huge. Our players, right the way across the game, make a substantial contribution. They’re human but there’s no question they, largely speaking, have a social conscience. The community work all the game’s stakeholders and partners – Kick It Out, Show Racism the Red Card – do is a significant component. There’s a collective conscience more than ever before, notwithstanding the challenges we have. We know where we have to improve. We need more coaches, more visibility. It’s a very long game. But I can say, ‘Look at the journey’. ‘Look where we were and where we are now’. We still know where we need to go. We’re constantly evolving all the time.