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'I don't want the next generation to put up with this evil': Raheem Sterling calls for drastic action to end racism including nine-point deductions
Raheem Sterling has called for automatic points deductions to end the spate of racist incidents in football.
The Manchester City star has drawn praise for both his handling of racist abuse and for leading the conversation on how to tackle discrimination in the sport.
The 24-year-old was on the receiving end of derogatory chants at Chelsea and in Montenegro with England.
And Sterling has now called for a series of harsh punishments, including huge points deductions, to bring an end to the vile abuse.
Writing in the Times, he also signed a manifesto to take serious action alongside the likes of Wilfried Zaha, Rafael Benitez and promising youngster Ryan Sessegnon.
"I'd call for an automatic nine-point deduction for racist abuse,” he wrote.
"It sounds harsh but which fan will risk racist behaviour if it might relegate their team or ruin their title bid?
"The club should have to play three games behind closed doors. That way, they lose revenue as a direct consequence of racist behaviour.
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"I don't know how long it'll take for things to change but we have to start now. I don't want the next generation of black players to have to put up with this evil."
The forward, with 29 goals for club and country this season, has been roundly praised for using his status to consistently raise the issue of racism in sport.
He has subsequently called for equal representation for black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) throughout football, including at coaching and boardroom level.
Sterling also pointed the finger at governing bodies who issued smaller fines for racism than other offences.
The former QPR and Liverpool man highlighted an example from Padiham and Congleton Town, where the former were fined a heavier fee for walking off the pitch in support of their goalkeeper.
"When I was a boy growing up in London, I didn't know what racist abuse was because I never suffered any," he added.
"So it seems crazy that, in 2019, I feel the need to write a piece in a newspaper calling for radical changes to the game that I love. But I do because the racism problem in football is so bad, runs so deep and is nowhere near being sorted.
"You will all have read about the various high-profile racist incidents in recent months: the abuse I received playing for Manchester City away to Chelsea; the booing that the black England players were subjected to in Montenegro; the nastiness that Moise Kean of Juventus endured in Italy and the endless insults thrown at players on social media.
"In my opinion, the people who run the game are doing nowhere near enough to solve the problem. And that's not good enough."
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