Racism is a topic that has plagued football for some time. Whether it’s hooligans looking for a reaction, racist chants at matches around the world or behind-the-scenes behavior, racism remains a point of contention in sport.
Clarence Seedorf, who remains the only player to have won the UEFA Champions League with three teams, is particularly close to the subject as a black man who managed to break into the world of international football management. During an interview with Grant Wahl on the Daily World Cup Podcast, Seedorf discussed the concept of racism in football and how international football should embrace something similar to racism. Rooney Rule which is being instituted in the NFL to create more opportunities to increase diversity in the coaching ranks of international football. Seedorf’s interview begins around the 13-minute mark:
“Well, I think there’s still a lot of prejudice,” Seedorf said when asked why there aren’t more black coaches in international football. “I don’t really think it’s just about football, I think football is a mirror of society. What we see in society is that there is a lot of movement to give a voice to the minority and minority groups.”
Seedorf also said that minorities trying to obtain management positions face a host of disadvantages that others do not have, including suffering from what we might call “black quarterback syndrome” in American football, where many do not view minority managers as “thinkers” or capable of making decisions.
He said the problem is twofold: Many former minority actors have gone through proper schooling and licensing but never had the chance to lead at a high level and minorities who find themselves in leadership positions may not recognize the responsibility they have and, when they perform poorly, that performance is unfairly blamed on everyone who looks like them. That’s why he favors something similar to the Rooney rule for international football, which would give a fairer chance of getting a job.
“It’s on both sides,” Seedorf said. “It’s not just the ones who get the jobs, but also the ones who go after them and make sure that you are prepared in the best way and are ready. Take your management courses and try to be the best.
“I like the whole Rooney Rule of the NFL. What I like so much is that they didn’t force them to hire them. But it really was, you have to interview them because it’s about bias. I’m a firm believer that bias is the first step, that we can still influence those who have those kinds of thoughts. If you have three interviews, make sure you have to interview a minority group as well. And that might help improve the situation as well.”
With Senegal out of the World Cup – and with it the competition’s only black coach, Aliou Cissé – it appears there is still plenty of work to do.
As for racism in football, Seedorf wanted to make sure the term was used correctly and carefully because it carries a lot of weight. He said that as technology has evolved, it has become easier to identify fans actually participating in racist actions and impose sanctions if necessary. But if things are to change, Seedorf believes fines on clubs and teams are not a good approach.
“I think, of course, action needs to be taken,” he said. “And not just in terms of fines, because I don’t think fines would help because the fines have been going on for years and years and we’re still seeing this kind of behavior. … So I thought they needed to tighten up the rules in terms of when these kinds of things happen, to really try to identify and make that effort to get these people banned from football because they’re not fans.
“It’s just people creating problems and that’s it. It’s either for violence or racist behavior and then a lot of times they blame the clubs. The clubs get fines and everything and I don’t know the effect of that.”
