The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Tuesday asked its disciplinary committee to look into a complaint filed by Mumbai City FC against a Saudi Arabian referee for allegedly making racist remarks to Serge Kevyn Angoue during an Indian Super League (ISL) match in Bengaluru on Sunday.
At the post-match press conference after Mumbai City’s encounter against Bengaluru FC, coach Jorge Costa accused Saudi Arabian referee Turki Mohammed Al Khudayr of racially abusing his 25-year-old Gabonese player Kevyn, saying “this referee made some gestures, calling him a monkey”.
Mumbai City followed it up by filing an official complaint to the AIFF, which looks after the refereeing in India’s premier domestic league.
The national federation has now tasked its six-member disciplinary committee—headed by senior advocate Ushanath Banerjee—to investigate the charge.
“Racism has no place in football across the world, whether it is in India or in the ISL or anywhere else,” AIFF general secretary Kushal Das said on Tuesday. “The disciplinary committee will investigate the matter, and it is completely the committee’s decision, which is an independent body, to decide on the action to be taken, if any,” he added.
Asked if there would be any specific timeline for the committee to complete its investigation, Das said: “That is completely up to the committee.”
{{/usCountry}}Asked if there would be any specific timeline for the committee to complete its investigation, Das said: “That is completely up to the committee.”
{{/usCountry}}Indranil Das Blah, the CEO of Mumbai City, said: “We have placed our complaint and will now wait for the disciplinary committee to come back with their findings.”
According to a source in the team, the alleged gestures and remarks were made during the fag end of the match on Sunday, and Kevyn even went up and confronted the Saudi Arabian referee after the final whistle. After a minor argument on the field, Kevyn informed his coach about the incident.
Mumbai’s Portuguese head coach Costa then began his press conference after the match by saying, “I am speaking about the respect that he (referee) did not have today with one player—Serge Kevyn. That during the game, this referee made some gestures, calling him a monkey. And this, there are things, that I cannot close my eyes.”