Scott Brown made plenty of enemies when he was Celtic captain; a headstrong, gallus midfield enforcer with unerring accuracy in the pass.
Whether it was opposition players or fans, he loved the occasional wind-up. He could’ve been mocking Aberdeen players for their tackles or seeing how Joey Barton was. It didn’t matter, he was a heel, and played the part perfectly.
But when it mattered, and when it matters still, Scott Brown was and is capable of brilliant gestures. At Celtic, he supported numerous charity appeals and fronted club efforts off-field, too.
So after Glen Kamara was disgustingly racially abused in the Czech Republic, Brown went to offer comfort [Daily Record].
In the Glasgow Derby that came afterwards, Brown walked across to the opposite half of the pitch to offer his unwavering support.
Now, for that gesture, he’s being nominated for the FIFA Fair Play Award.
It was an achingly sensitive moment but Scott Brown played it exactly right. A moment of utter solidarity against racism and prejudice, when it was absolutely needed.
Club rivalries be damned, this was bigger than football.
Former Celtic captain Scott Brown and his award nod from FIFA
Scott Brown is nominated alongside the Denmark national team and their medical staff, and Claudio Ranieri. The former came to Christian Eriksen’s aid when he suffered a cardiac arrest during Euro 2020 [Sky].
The latter, who won a famous Premier League title with Leicester City, is being nominated for his Sampdoria side’s guard of honour against Inter Milan.
Surely nobody would doubt that Denmark and their team are the likely and deserved winners here. Their reactions at a critical moment inspired clubs to install defibrillators [Football Foundation], and saved Eriksen’s life.
Celtic fans have actually won this award before. When 80,000 supporters descended upon Seville in 2003 and made friends with the locals, the Hoops faithful were given FIFA Fair Play Award honours [Herald].
From a Celtic perspective, seeing Scott Brown up there in FIFA nominations is something to be proud of. When a big gesture of support and anti-racism was needed, he was there to provide it. The politics of football rivalry took a backseat.
You can imagine that Brown himself probably won’t be looking for personal recognition for it, though. That wasn’t what it was about.
The most important thing was whether or not Glen Kamara felt the support of Brown, Celtic and Scottish football at the time. Given the reaction to it at the time, that appeared to be the case.
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