Jude Bellingham is leading the latest generation of young Black players coming to terms with the game’s inability to protect them from racism.
Despite being one of the most coveted players in world football, Borussia Dortmund’s England midfielder has already been forced - at just 18 - to grapple with the kind of hate his mum Denise and weary players far older have had to endure for decades. Now, for the first time since last summer’s European Championship, Bellingham has opened up on his shock at seeing the abuse aimed at then-fellow teen Bukayo Saka, Jadon Sancho, 21 at the time and 24-year-old Marcus Rashford, after their missed penalties in the final.
“You look at the run into that final and you felt as though the country had united,” Bellingham said, recalling the growing momentum around the national team at the time. “Then as soon as they missed a penalty, they were not English, just black. Anyone can miss a penalty. Anyone can make a mistake in their line of work. But to be criticised like that should never happen. They are human.
“They are all top, top characters. To see them brought down like that was disgusting. As a team-mate it’s hard to take because that could have been me. What if I’d missed a penalty? You’re English for seven games and then all of a sudden, you’re nothing.
"I know these are select idiots, of course, and it’s not the whole nation turning against them. I’m sure that they probably had a bigger comeback of support. But the only support they should need is for missing the penalty, not for the racism that they’ve received after it.”
Bellingham highlighted the backing of England boss Gareth Southgate who condemned the abuse, defended his players and continues to make the Three Lions squad an open, welcoming forum for players to express their concerns. “To be fair, Gareth Southgate was brilliant,” he said.
“He has always brought it up as a topic in meetings when we are aware that we going to [a country with a history of racism]. We went to Hungary shortly after the Euros and the same thing happened again but we felt more prepared. We felt more supported because of what Gareth had put in place. As a Black player you feel very grateful for that.”
Bellingham’s own experience came last December when, after Dortmund’s 3-2 defeat to Bayern Munich and with feelings running high, he questioned the appointment of referee Felix Zwayer, referring to the official's six-month ban for a match-fixing scandal in 2005. Days later, Bellingham was hit with a £34,000 fine from the German FA. He, though, believes there are inconsistencies with the way football’s governing bodies address racism by comparison.
“There’s not a single job in the world where you deserve to be criticised with racism,” he said. “I’ll never forget the first time I properly got a batch of messages. My club were quick to send someone to message me and make sure I was alright and I really appreciate that. I had team-mates message me and family members.
“I didn’t receive anything from the DFB, the German FA. And I always kind of compare it to when I said the thing about the referee in December. They were very quick to get into contact to give me my fine, give me my punishment and kind of make it a big drama in the media.
“I’ve learned from that. I know what I can and can’t say. I know that sometimes I have to control my emotions better. But, you know, when you give that more energy than the situation I was going through, well - I felt: ‘Maybe we are alone. Maybe they’re not interested, maybe they don’t care. And maybe it is down to me and down to us to work independently to get our message out.’”
Mum Denise and Dad Mark have been inspirations for the midfielder whose confidence beyond his years has already made him a key figure in the Dortmund team. While his football idols are the likes of Wayne Rooney and Zinedine Zidane, neither compare to Bellingham’s mum.
“I speak a lot about my parents and the people that have kind of brought me up in football and not just in football, but in life as well,” he said. My mum and my dad are two huge role models of mine because of the way they’ve obviously carried themselves, the things that they’ve had to face in their own journeys.”
Bellingham, whose 16-year-old brother Jobe is learning his trade at Birmingham, went on: “My mum has always given me a lot of lessons on how I’ll be perceived by other people sometimes because of the colour of my skin, sometimes the way that we’re stereotyped.
“I think for her to do a lot of the stuff she’s done just to make sure me and my brother never have to want for anything - I can’t put into words how much it means to me. My mum is certainly one of my heroes off the pitch, if not the biggest one.”
