Supporters from across the country took part in the survey
87% of football fans believe Kick It Out can continue to contribute to reducing discrimination and promoting equality across all levels of the game, according to new research conducted by the Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF).
Supporters revealed their backing for the campaign after Kick It Out and the FSF launched a survey to gain an insight into fans’ perceptions of the initiative following the occurrence of a number of high-profile incidents during the 2011 One Game, One Community weeks of action.
Reflecting on the survey’s findings, Lord Herman Ouseley, Chair of Kick It Out, said: “Since its inception in 1993, Kick It Out has relied heavily on the backing of supporters and fan organisations in conveying its key messages. This survey was carried out in order to gauge the feeling amongst fans towards the campaign and its effectiveness, and it’s clear that supporters continue to back us in the work we do in eradicating discrimination from the game.”
Raj Chandarana, an FSF Executive Committee Member who leads on diversity, commented: “This survey highlights the importance of the work that Kick It Out does in campaigning to eradicate discrimination in football at all levels. The FSF, as the leading voice of fans in all tiers of football, is committed to working closely with Kick It Out to ensure that fans play their part in ensuring that our national game can be enjoyed by everyone. The FSF looks forward to strengthening its partnership with Kick It Out in the coming months.”
The survey found that 71% of supporters believe that discrimination in football is still a serious and widespread issue. In order to tackle this, 74.8% believe that Kick It Out as an organisation is required to carry out the work independently, whilst results showed that 67.9% are aware of the process needed to be taken in order to report incidents.
Highly visible at Premier League and Football League grounds, the Kick It Out brand is recognised by 95.8% of supporters who have seen work related to the campaign at a game or a club event. In addition to this, 92.7% understand the goals of the initiative, with 85.9% saying the organisation is well respected. 79.5% believe the campaign has made a noticeable difference.
Other findings showed that just 54.5% of fans know about the weeks of action, and that there are growing concerns amongst supporters surrounding the lack of Asian representation in the professional game, the issue of homophobia in football and the small amount of activity around the Gypsy, Roma, Traveller (GRT) community’s involvement in the game.
One fan said: “I will consider Kick It Out to have been a success when we start seeing British Asians playing the game, an area that really is under-represented,” with another adding: “Whilst I acknowledge the good work Kick It Out does in reducing racism in football, I feel the problem is more widespread in society in general which limits the influence the campaign can have in getting it to the level we would all like to see.”
