ROME - Football commentators and players alike continue to express their outrage after AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan faced racist abuse on Saturday night during Milan vs. Udinese. Racist chants and insults including ‘monkey’ were heard which led to the AC Milan team walking off the pitch around the half-hour mark. Play was resumed after ten minutes, with AC Milan going on to win the match 2-3.

 After the match, AC Milan posted a statement on X, saying ‘there is absolutely no place in our game for racism’ and the Lega Serie A account echoed the sentiment, saying it ‘condemns any form of racism’.

 On Sunday morning, Maignan release a statement condemning the fans for their complicity, including those who ‘kept quiet’, and Udinese football club, who only referred to the incident as an ‘interruption’. He added that ‘it is not the first time this has happened to me. And I am not the first person it has happened to.’ In 2021, shortly after joining Milan, he faced racist abuse from Juventus fans. On social media, Maignan drew support from Premier League legends such as Ian Wright, and his national teammate Kylian Mbappé, both who have been victims of racist abuse on the pitch.

 This comes weeks after Lazio were penalised for racist chants directed towards Lukaku at the Coppa Italia clash between Roma and Lazio. Their next match against Napoli, on 28^th January, will be played with 16,000 empty seats as Lazio fans will not be admitted into the stadium. These incidents are not unique to Serie A, with another incident of racial abuse occurring in the English Championship League at the weekend. The president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, has called for ‘automatic forfeits’ for teams whose supporters hurl racist abuse and a ban on allowing the perpetrators into stadiums.

 Although a decision has not yet been reached for Udinese, it is expected a harsh punishment will be implemented. In the meantime, the Mayor of Udine has asked the city council to grant honorary citizenship to Maignan. Maignan still seems hopeful for the future, saying that the fight against racism ‘is a fight we will win’.