Football Team Change Names On Shirt For Racist Insults Received

A football team’s foreign players have swapped the names on their shirts for the racist insults they have received including “n*gger”, “gorilla” and “slave”.

Spanish side Alma de Africa (Soul of Africa ) which was created by immigrants and features players from 12 different countries, made the stand in an Andalusia Third Division match.

The footballers wearing the shirt with theinsults they receive

The side, based in the city of Jerez de la Frontera, decided to change the names on the back of the shirts for racist insults the players have received.

The side’s number 9 had the word ‘negrata’ (n*gger) printed on his back while other insults included “gorilla”, “slave” and “monkey”.

Number 18 bore the English word “nigga” whilst others had “without papers”, “gypsy” and “sudaca”, an offensive word used to describe South Americans in Spain.

Central midfielder Eric Josue Amang, from Cameroon, told reporters: “I played with the word ‘monkey’ on my back. We did it to tell everyone that were aren’t delinquents. We are people and we don’t annoy anyone.

“We still hear insults and it’s something that both we and the professionals suffer. Not long ago a Juventus player faced up to the whole stand. I remember Samuel Eto’o was also almost about to stop a match.”

The footballers wearing the shirt with theinsults they receive;

He added that the players “want to be respected” as we are in “the 21st century”, adding: “I don’t understand how those insults can still be said. We are fed up with contempt.”

Eric, who travelled from Cameroon to Morocco before arriving in Spain in a small boat in 2013, now works in a slaughterhouse.

In the video, Alma de Africa’s players can be seen wearing the special shirts in the huddle before the match, shouting: “What are we? A team! What are we? A family! What are we? Alma de Africa!”

Many of the team’s players do not have residency in Spain but the Andalucia Football Federation allows them to register using their passports. Local media report they are the football team with the most immigrants in Spain.

Alma lost the match against league leaders Algaida 6-1 but the side’s president Alejandro Benitez said the match was about “showing our players are so far above the insults they can put them on their backs”.