Glen Kamara "overwhelmed" by support of Celtic fans in wake of racism incident

By Euan Davidson

April 14, 2021

Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara has been “overwhelmed” by support from Celtic fans, according to his lawyer.

Kamara had been racially abused by Ondrej Kudela during Rangers’ meeting with Slavia Prague in the Europa League. Today, UEFA announced that Kudela was being banned for ten games, following a UEFA disciplinary hearing. Kamara was suspended for three matches as a result of his reaction to the Finn’s racist remarks [BBC].

Aamer Anwar, Kamara’s legal representative and former Rector of the University of Glasgow, told the BBC that the Gers midfielder was heartened by the support he received. Across Scottish football, message of solidarity were sent to the midfielder. Scott Brown, ahead of the last Glasgow Derby, made sure to reach across the aisle to show his support.

Kamara had already expressed his gratitude to Celtic supporters. Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Sportsound programme, Anwar said [14/4, 18:13]:

“He does feel vindicated today. And he does want to thank Steven Gerrard, he does want to thank Rangers Football Club and its fans. But he also wants to thank the fans and the clubs, who put aside football rivalry to support him and stand united against racism.

“He was overwhelmed by the support that he received from Celtic fans. People sometimes forget, because of the intense rivalry that we have in this city, that people actually were able to come together. That is an important message, and it’s something we can take away from this and learn from.

Glen Kamara at Celtic Park / (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Celtic fans, Rangers fans; everyone should unite against racism

As heartening as it is to hear that Celtic supporters got behind Kamara in this row, there needs to be more done. The fact that this incident happened in a top-level football match in 2021 is absolutely appalling.

While clubs across Scotland have sent out the anti-racism message, it’s UEFA who need to get a grip on this. Truthfully, they really should’ve acted far sooner, and punished Kudela and Slavia Prague far more harshly. Personally, I’d argue it’s a bit of a joke that Kamara was punished for reacting to a foul and disgusting display of discrimination.

Whether you’re Green and White or Blue, we need to act together on anti-racism. Tackling discrimination, bigotry and injustice goes beyond the confines of football rivalry. It is a societal ill, and football can play a big part in helping to tackle it.

That’s domestically or on the continent. We need to be leaders, together, in combatting all and every form of discrimination. So, we use this space to commend the Celtic supporters who got in touch with Glen Kamara to offer their support.

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