A Brisbane Lions fan has had their membership revoked after they hurled a “disgusting racial slur” towards Adelaide Crows midfielder Izak Rankine on social media following his off-the-ball bump with Brandon Starcevich.
On Monday, the Adelaide footy club released a statement, endorsing the ban the Brisbane Lions handed to a fan who made a racist comment towards Rankine after Sunday night’s clash.
The club acknowledged that AFL had no space for this type of vilification, especially during NAIDOC Week where Australia’s First Nations people should be celebrated.
“The Club is providing support to Rankine after he was racially abused on social media by a Brisbane Lions member on Sunday,” the Adelaide Crows shared.
“It is even more disappointing given it is NAIDOC Week and a time at which we should be celebrating Indigenous culture rather than dealing with vilification.”
Further in the statement, Adelaide Crows CEO Tim Silvers said it is “infuriating that these situations continue to occur” in AFL.
“There is no place for racism of any kind in society and it is extremely sad and disappointing that we find ourselves dealing with yet another abhorrent attack on one of our players,” Silvers said.
“As an industry, we have a collective responsibility to not only call out racism, but do everything we can to eradicate it, and we support Brisbane which has acted swiftly and decisively.
“It is also important we take the time to understand the hurt this behaviour causes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people because unfortunately, despite how far we have come in this space, the message is still not getting through.”
In a separate statement, the Brisbane Lions stood in solidarity with Rankine, writing: “Racism is unacceptable”.
“We condemn the social media comments made towards an Adelaide Crows player during the match last night,” the club shared.
“They do not reflect the values of our club or our players.”
Brisbane Lions also revealed that alongside the fan’s canned membership, the comment has been raised to the AFL Integrity Department for “further investigation”.
Per The West, Rankine received backlash — and was even “heavily booed” by punters — during Sunday night’s clash, where he was involved in an off-the-ball bump with Brisbane’s Brandon Starcevich.
Silvers has stated the club will continue to support Rankine and his family as investigations into the comment escalate.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time the Crows’ player has copped online racial abuse. In April 2023, the AFL’s Integrity Unit also launched an investigation into racist comments that were directed at Rankine, which were addressed by the footy star and the Adelaide Crows.
Image source: Getty Images / Mark Brake
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