Professional footballers in England and Wales are to boycott social media for 24 hours on Friday, to protest against the way social networks and football authorities respond to racism.
The move followed a number of high-profile racist incidents in domestic and international football matches this season.
Manchester United captain, Ashley Young, was the latest victim of online racial abuse, after his side were eliminated from the Champions League on Tuesday in the hands of Barcelona.
Troy Deeney, Watford captain, who was also subjected to abuse on the night he helped his team reached the FA Cup final. He disabled his Instagram account after the incident.
Deeney, on Thursday, said “enough is enough”.
“On Friday we are sending a message to anyone that abuses players – or anyone else – whether from the crowd or online, that we won’t tolerate it within football.The boycott is just one small step, but the players are speaking out with one voice against racism,” he added.
Racist chants were directed at several England players, including Danny Rose and Raheem Sterling during a Euro 2020 qualifier in Montenegro last month.
Rose, who plays for Tottenham Hotspur later said he “can’t wait to see the back of football”.
“I don’t want any future players to go through what I’ve been through in my career.
“Collectively, we are simply not willing to stand by while too little is done by football authorities and social media companies to protect players from this disgusting abuse,” he stated.
The #Enough campaign, organised by the Professional Footballers’ Association, said it would start the boycott on Friday till Saturday.
Players have been encouraged to post a #Enough graphic on their social media platforms before the boycott.
United defender, Chris Smalling also said: “The time has come for Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to consider regulating their channels, taking responsibility for protecting the mental health of users regardless of age, race, sex or income.”
The PFA said the boycott was the “first step in a longer campaign to tackle racism in football”.
“The boycott acts as a show of unity by the players, and a call for stronger action to be taken by social networks and footballing authorities in response to racist abuse both on and off the pitch,” the PFA said in a statement.
Discussion about this post