Football fan banned from matches after racially abusing Huddersfield player
68-year-old Gareth Ralph from Bristol's actions were reported by fans around him during the Robins v Huddersfield Match in 2021
Last updated 15th Jun 2024
A football fan been banned from any UK football match for the next three years after racially abusing a player.
On 18 December 2021, 68-year-old Gareth Ralph from Southville in Bristol attended a Robins match who were up against Huddersfield Town at Ashton Gate.
He appeared in court yesterday (18 May) after being found guilty of a racially-aggravated public order offence.
Ralph racially abused an opposition player, with the matter being reported by people who heard what he said in the stadium.
The banning order will prevent him from attending any match for the duration of the three years.
He also has to surrender his passport for the duration of senior international football tournaments.
Ralph was also fined ÂŁ300, must pay ÂŁ100 compensation and ordered to pay ÂŁ201 in costs and victim surcharge.
PC Tom Williams from Avon and Somerset Police said: “This kind of behaviour has no place within football or wider society. When incidents are reported, they will be thoroughly investigated and we will seek football banning orders for offenders.
“The abuse was fortunately not heard by the player himself, but this case highlights the importance of supporters reporting such incidents to the authorities if they do encounter any form of hate abuse. We are hugely grateful to those who reported this incident to us so we could get justice in this case.
“It’s always preferable for matters to be reported at the time to stewards in the ground or to the police. Alternatively the anonymous phone line advertised by clubs can be used as this allows us to act on the incident immediately and increases the likelihood of us being able to identify those responsible.
“We will continue to work with all football clubs, players, supporters groups, Kick It Out and the Players Football Association to tackle this kind of deplorable and inexcusable behaviour.”
In a statement, Bristol City FC said: "Bristol City Football Club condemns the actions of the aforementioned individual and would like to firmly reiterate our zero tolerance policy towards racism or discrimination of any kind.
"The Club has fully supported Avon & Somerset Police throughout the process and the decision to issue a football banning order.
"If fans see or hear any racist, homophobic or any other abuse around the stadium they should report it to our text line: 07770 736 047."
You can visit the Kick It Out website here.