Set up in 1993, Kick it Out is a platform to stop discrimination in football, calling it out wherever it happens. They have put equality and inclusion first, driven by love for the sport and have made remarkable progress since their expansion in 1997, championing change and raising awareness for all manner of issues faced by those in the footballing world. Today, they are not only running educational programmes for academy players, parents and fans, but are also supporting underrepresented communities who are aiming to pursue a career in football.
Despite some progress when it comes to discrimination, the football world still has a long way to go. In response, Kick It Out have launched the ‘Kick It Out Strategy 2030’ – a new 5-year plan to ‘unite football to end discrimination.’ To reach their goals, they have published a leaflet including their four aims, their role in reaching those goals, as well as their commitments.
Their Goals
Their first goal of including everyone might sound simple, but reports have shown that the footballing world is not removed from discrimination. According to Kick It Out, racism accounts for 50% of all discrimination reports. However, racism is not the only issue the organisation highlights. More than half of women involved in football have experienced sexism, a troubling reality in a space that should make everyone feel safe and welcome.
Additionally, the campaign is highlighting that transphobic abuse in football is on the rise. Disabled fans are also facing significant struggles, for example, when visiting stadiums. Kick It Out are aiming to break down these barriers and make football a space where everyone feels safe regardless of their position in the sport, ethnicity, sexuality, gender or beliefs.
While representation off the pitch is important, it is key to enhance representation on the pitch too. There are still limitations when it comes to opportunities for certain communities such as Black and Asian players in the women’s game. Nevertheless, it is not just the players that are underrepresented, it is also match officials as well.
Kick It Out have shared that among grassroots referees, 10% are from ethnic minorities, while at professional level it is only 7%. It is important to give talent from all backgrounds the opportunity to find their place in the footballing community, feel seen and show the players, officials, coaches and staff members of tomorrow that they can achieve everything they set their mind to.
“Drive representation where the action happens, so everyone can easily see faces like theirs on the pitch.”
To truly embark on that journey, it is essential to strengthen pathways that enable talent from all backgrounds to access roles across the game — including officials, coaches, staff, physiotherapists, and positions in the boardroom. Calling on the governing bodies to not only combat the severe underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in leadership roles, but also call for more reflection of these communities at clubs from the perspective of those affected by discrimination is vital.
We cannot only rely on governing bodies and campaigns like Kick It Out to fight against discrimination. Everyone has to stand up to discrimination – the fans, the players and everyone else involved in football. Kick It Out will continue to collect and share data on discrimination, holding those in power accountable and taking decisive action to “ensure football meets abuse head-on with courage and consistency.” This commitment comes at a crucial time, as online hate speech targeting women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and players from ethnic minority backgrounds continues to rise.
Their Role
To drive these changes in inclusion, Kick It Out have enhanced their role in reaching the goals laid out in their leaflet. One of the aspects is education and development.
This means that Kick It Out aims to train the next generation, regardless of their role within football, to “provide access to the tools everyone deserves and support that changes behaviour and develops potential.” Their first step is to challenge attitudes towards discrimination through their Fan Education Programme, which helps supporters take a stand against discriminatory behaviour and promotes inclusion across the sport.
Kick It Out also plans to invest in their own learning platform, The Academy, providing individuals in football with access to industry-leading education and training. They aim to expand this initiative to academy players, increase engagement in the women’s game, and grow the number of youth ambassadors promoting anti-discrimination.
Lastly, they are in the process of developing programmes to support underrepresented talent in different roles in the sports industry to provide them with the best chance possible to achieve their goals.
Kick It Out are aiming to create deeper partnerships with institutions that share common ground to then develop joint programmes and campaigns with their partners in the game. Pre-existing partners include the Premier League, the FA, the WSL, Sky, McDonald’s Fun Football and UCFB. With the help of these partners, they are aiming to fulfil their role as a movement that builds a network of joint projects with club’s community groups, organisations and campaigners to align their motivations to champion change.
In doing so, Kick It Out aims to hold those in power accountable by using data to influence decision-makers to take action in promoting inclusion, including online safety. They also seek to improve coordination between campaigns and institutions, ensuring clear outcomes and generating actionable research and thought leadership.
Finally, a central part of Kick It Out’s work is tackling discrimination by providing people with opportunities to report all forms of abuse within the game. However, addressing discrimination goes beyond reporting alone. Kick It Out also focuses on ensuring consistent and appropriate responses to these reports, while developing new reporting partnerships to understand why certain communities may be less likely to come forward. By improving transparency and clearly demonstrating the impact of reporting, they aim to build trust with those affected and strengthen the overall reporting process.
“As Kick It Out continue to champion change against discrimination, the future promises a football society which makes everyone feel welcome no matter their ethnicity, gender, sexuality or beliefs, to provide a safe space for everyone involved in the game. The players, coaches and physiotherapists of the future will be able to see like-minded people just like themselves on and off the pitch and will go on to achieve remarkable things and make football a better place – because you can’t be what you can’t see.”
