West Ham are under pressure to take action after one of their youth coaches said he went on a march organised by the Democratic Football Lads Alliance, a group condemned by anti-racism campaigners.
Mark Phillips, who coaches West Ham’s Under-18s, is facing some awkward questions after his support for the DFLA was brought to the attention of Kick It Out, football’s anti-discrimination charity. Phillips posted on Twitter about attending the DFLA’s march through central London last Saturday and defended the right-wing organisation in subsequent tweets.
The DFLA, a group formed of mainly middle-aged, white male football fans had planned a mass march from Park Lane to Whitehall. Organisers said on Facebook that they were protesting against “returning jihadists”, “thousands of Awol migrants”, “rape gangs and groomers” and “veterans treated like traitors”. The demonstration descended into violence when anti-racist protesters attempted to block the DFLA’s route.
Although there is no suggestion that Phillips was involved in any of the disturbances, his future at West Ham could be under threat given that the DFLA has been accused of spreading Islamophobia and of having links with far-right organisations. Kick It Out contacted the London Stadium club on Monday afternoon after receiving a report from an anonymous complainant and is monitoring the situation closely. It also alerted the Football Association. However, the FA is not in a position to take disciplinary action as Phillips does not appear to have broken any laws/regulations.
A Kick It Out spokesman told the Guardian: “We can confirm we’ve received a report about a West Ham coach claiming to have attended the DFLA rally in London at the weekend. We have passed it on to the club and are liaising with them about the issue.”
For more read the full of article at The Guardian
