Legendary striker John Fashanu has urged England’s World Cup squad to take the knee in Qatar next month – not just for racism, but for gay rights too.
In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Mirror, the former England and Wimbledon ace admitted he used to shun his late brother Justin, the first professional footballer to come out.
But now he says gay fans should be allowed to be themselves at the tournament that kicks off next month in the Islamic state, where same-sex acts are punishable by up to seven years in jail.
Fash, 60, overcame appalling racism during his playing career and says more still needs to be done to boot that form of hatred out of football too. He said: “If I was playing in Qatar I would take the knee to send the message we’re against all forms of discrimination.”
Fashanu believes the presence of gay fans at the tournament might help Qataris understand what it means to be LGBT. It was a lesson he admits he didn’t learn until older brother Justin left him in no doubt – by burying him on a beach so he could feel exactly what is like to be squeezed and suffocated from all sides.
The tortured ace was the first Black player to command a £1million transfer fee, but Justin ended up killing himself in a lock-up garage in London’s Shoreditch, in 1998, when he was just 37.
It was eight years after he had come out publicly... but John admitted paying him £75,000 to keep quiet at one point to save the family embarrassment.
He said: “If anyone was to blame for what happened it was me. I shunned my brother. If I was like that with him, what was everyone else like?”
It was while the pair were messing about on Brighton beach in 1985 that John was able to finally see what being gay meant in those days. They dug a hole in the sand and Justin – who was on loan to Brighton and Hove Albion – told 6ft 1in John to lie in it.
John said: “He started piling on sand until only my head was poking out. It hurt. I was struggling to breathe. Then he just left me there. When he finally came back I was in tears. He said, ‘Now you know what it feels like to be me every single day.’
“He said it was like always being squeezed. And for the first time I understood what it meant to be both Black and gay at that time. Just as Justin made me understand that day, our fans can help the Qataris look again at their own position on LGBT rights. The World Cup should be an opportunity to educate.”
But Fash added: “Of course LGBT people must be able to be who they are, but they must also respect the laws of the country they are guests in.”
He agrees with Foreign Secretary James Cleverly who recently said gay fans should be respectful of the host nation and “make some compromises in a... country with a very different set of cultural norms”.
His advice was not supported by BBC football pundit Gary Lineker, who said: “Whatever you do, don’t do anything gay. Is that the message?”
He has promised the BBC’s coverage will include the controversies around Qatar. It has also been widely criticised by human rights campaigners after many migrant workers were said to have died building World Cup stadiums.
The International Trade Union Confederation puts the figure at 7,000 by the time the tournament starts, while the Qatari authorities claim there have been three fatalities in that time.
Labour leader Keir Starmer said this week he is not going to the World Cup because of Qatar’s abysmal human rights record and FA President Prince William is now said to be “too busy” to attend. And new PM Rishi Sunak also said yesterday he has no plans to go to any of the games.
But David Beckham has been slammed for taking £10m from Qatar for an ambassadorial role which makes him the ‘face’ of the World Cup. His former Manchester United team-mate Eric Cantona said Beckham had made “a big, big mistake.”
Gareth Southgate’s squad is still undecided over whether to take the knee – a symbol of protesting against racism – at their first game against Iran on November 21. But skipper Harry Kane will wear a “OneLove” rainbow armband during the tournament.
Fash said the high point of his 17-year footie career was when he captained Wimbledon between 1986 and 1994. The side, that also featured tough players Vinnie Jones and Dennis Wise, was nicknamed the Crazy Gang and had a reputation for violence.
Despite many shocking claims, Fash said: “That’s wrong. We weren’t thugs or hooligans. But when we played we were no nonsense, hardmen. Wimbledon was our family and we were committed to it. But now we’ve grown up and have families of our own. My only regret is it all ended too quickly. It was my happiest time in football. I wish Wimbledon had gone on for ever.”
He does not have such happy memories of his earlier career. On his very first day at Norwich City in 1978, the new apprentices were given jobs to do. John, who was the only Black man, recalled: “My job was to clean the toilet.” In 1984, he suffered appalling abuse while playing for Lincoln City at Millwall’s home ground, The Den.
He said: “I was the only Black player on a bus surrounded by white supporters wanting to fight me. That was my introduction to Millwall fans. They were booing, throwing cups and food at me, using the N-word. It took seven police officers to escort me off.”
So it came as a shock when, three days later, he was transferred to... Millwall.
Fash said: “On the first day in the changing room no one would shake my hand. All I could feel was hostility. The only person to greet me was manager George Graham. Great man. The first match was hell. The Millwall crowd hated me. Training was not much better. All the players were against me.
“When I wasn’t touching the ball one of the players used the N-word. So I threw a punch and he threw one back. Then all the players pitched in and started beating me up. Back in the changing room my clothes were cut up.”
John reckons it took four months to be accepted. He said: “The breakthrough was when one of the players offered to share his chips with me.”
Now he believes not every bad thing that happened was down to race-hate. He said: “When you’re the only Black player in a team you can blame everything on racism. That was my mindset.
“But at Norwich City, when the next batch of apprentices arrived, it was a white player who got the toilets. And cutting up clothes was akin to a ritual in some clubs back then. I felt I was targeted for being Black. But it might have been jealousy because I was good.”
Fash advises young Black players to try to ignore the name calling and avoid confrontation. But he added: “There are still fans who scream racist abuse. We must educate them.”
He reckons one unconventional way would be for Black players to invite fans hurling racist abuse to join them on the pitch. “They could hardly refuse that kind of honour,” said Fash.
“Then show them on the big screens, laughing and joking with Black players. It would make the others think twice.” Fash, who has dual British-Nigerian citizenship, has lived in Nigeria capital Abuja for the last 16 years. But we caught up with him at an ice rink in Berkshire – where he is in training for ITV ’s next Dancing on Ice series. He said: “It’s the toughest challenge of my sporting career, but it’s great to do.”
Fash retired from the game in 1995 while playing for Aston Villa. He was stretchered off when a tackle by Manchester United’s Ryan Giggs snapped his knee ligaments.
But he went from football to telly and co-hosted hit 1990s show Gladiators with Ulrika Jonsson. And the old injury has not stopped him on the ice. He said: “Yup, I’m all healed now. And I’ll let you into a secret. I was probably able to play football again. But no one asked me. The insurance money was clearly worth more than having Big Fash back in the game.”
