‘The fight has taken its toll’ Kick It Out chairman Lord Ouseley quits after 25 years

Ouseley speaks out as he reveals plan to quit Guardiola calls for zero tolerance on racism

Lord Ouseley, the pioneering antidiscrimination campaigner, revealed he received hate mail after the Raheem Sterling race row last night as he announced plans to step down as chairman of Kick It Out.

Ouseley, who founded the campaign group 25 years ago, called on football’s elite to show leadership on racism as he admitted his personal fight against prejudice had taken its toll, although his decision to leave his post was not related to the Sterling furore – the 73-year-old had told trustees he was standing down several months ago.

However, he has received attacks in the post since Saturday’s incident at Stamford Bridge. Having called out senior figures from Chelsea, the Football Association and the Premier League for failing to condemn racism against Sterling, Ouseley said it was “not unusual” to receive hate mail.

Yesterday, England and Manchester City forward Sterling was hailed by his club manager, Pep Guardiola, for his maturity in handling the verbal attack caught on cameras. Chelsea fan Colin Wing has apologised to Sterling but denied using racist language.

In a statement announcing his plans to stand down next year, Ouseley, who has never received a penny for his work, said the elite still “need to show they are capable of bringing about lasting change”. He said: “Over the past decade, I have indicated my wish each year to step down and move on but have always been told that ‘not now, this is the wrong time’ and no one else has stuck their head above the parapet to lead the organisation.

“Now is the right time for new leadership of Kick It Out as I refocus my life for new challenges after 56 years of public service. I have thrown challenges at the leaders in football and they need to show their hands – they need to show they are capable of bringing about lasting change if they all come together out of their silos and take a dynamic and coherent approach to meeting the equality challenges.”

The Sterling attack came a week after a banana skin was thrown at Arsenal’s Pierre-emerick Aubameyang. Troy Townsend, a leading candidate to become the charity’s next chair, told The Daily Telegraph that campaigners may need to see funding doubled to tackle surging volumes of prejudice. Ouseley paid tribute to Kick It Out’s staff, whom he said were well positioned to continue the fight. “There is so much to be done before I sign off next year, so onwards with the action while I prepare to hang up my boots,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police continued to assess claims that Wing called Sterling a “f------ black c---” on Saturday. The 60-year-old, from Beckenham, south-east London, apologised for his actions but denied he was a racist, telling the Daily Mail: “I’m deeply ashamed by my own behaviour and I feel really bad. But I didn’t call him a black c---, I called him a Manc c---.”

Wing also claimed he had been sacked from his job and lost his season ticket as a result of his actions. Chelsea suspended four supporters from Stamford Bridge and passed their names to Scotland Yard.

Subsequently, Sterling wrote, in an Instagram post, that he “had to laugh” when he heard the alleged racist remarks during the game because he did not “expect any better”. Guardiola, the City manager, said Sterling was an “incredible” person for his response.

Guardiola said: “The problem is that racism is everywhere, not just in football. It is in what happens today to immigrants and refugees around the world in terms of how we treat them, when once in our lives we were refugees; our grandfathers, great-grandfathers, mothers were refugees. There has to be zero tolerance on this issue.

“I appreciated what Chelsea did. If it happened in my club, we should do the same. We have to fight it for the human rights, to make a better society and future.

“Today, it’s dangerous, not just in England, but all across Europe, [because] the message for politicians is for them to be tough on human rights.”