British football fan does prison time, gets lifetime ban for racism

News server SuperSpy.cz reports that a Chelsea football fan committed the offense earlier this week of imitating a monkey during a match in order to racially abuse a dark-skinned Manchester United footballer. Police arrested him and he will not be seen at the stadium again.

British Police did not miss the racist gestures by Gavin Kirkham, who was arrested and spent some time in prison. Chelsea did not take long to ban him for life.

"We will not stand up for that kind of fan," said club spokesperson Petr Čech. "The Chelsea Football Club has banned the 28-year-old man from attending matches at the Stamford Bridge Stadium. We are collaborating with police, providing them all of the background documentation they need, and we are glad this man was not a season ticket holder."

SuperSpy.cz speculates that a similar situation would unfold completely differently in the Czech football league, as follows:

1. The player would complain in a television interview that a particular man on the screen had made an abusive racist gesture toward him from the stands.

2. Commentator Míra Bosák would commiserate with him and say how horrible it was, that something like that would never happen in the German Bundesliga or in golf, and would call on the disciplinary body to immediately intervene.

3. The disciplinary body would investigate, look at all the video footage, and issue a resolution saying the man must be punished.

4. One month later, the disciplinary body would issue another resolution saying the man from the stands had yet to be identified.

5. Another month after that, the man would turn up at the editorial offices of a tabloid paper, tell them he was the person who made monkey gestures at Sparta Prague footballer Kweuke, and give them an interview in exchange for a fat honorarium. The journalists would refuse to reveal his identity.

6. The man would then contact the disciplinary body and tell them the video footage couldn’t be introduced as evidence in court and threaten to sue them if they take any steps against him.

7. The head of the disciplinary commission would publicly apologize to the fan for accusing him of racism.

8. Six months later, the fan from Brno would be back in the stands, in the same seat, and would offer Kweuke a banana.