In response to the billionaire industrialist and Manchester United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe’s historically, economically and culturally illiterate and deeply offensive remark that “the UK is being colonised by immigrants”, it was fitting that he should be rebuked, albeit only implicitly, in a statement issued by the football club amid a tsunami of condemnation from politicians, club supporters and anti-racist groups (Jim Ratcliffe apologises for ‘choice of language’ after saying immigrants ‘colonising’ UK, 12 February).
Quite rightly, Ratcliffe’s words are now being investigated by the Football Association. As a lifelong Manchester United fan, I have no doubt that Ratcliffe has brought the game into disrepute and sullied the club’s reputation. His vile comments constitute a failure of moral leadership and a betrayal of the club’s proud and pivotal role in the anti-racism work of Kick It Out, making him wholly unfit to be co-owner of a club with an unparalleled global fanbase, including in Africa and Asia.
