Trevor Sinclair has apologised for any offence caused after his controversial tweet about the Queen on the day of her death.
Queen Elizabeth II sadly passed away on Thursday, aged 96. She died peacefully at her Balmoral estate after a 70-year reign. Many in football have paid tribute to the beloved monarch, with fixtures in the UK on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday postponed as a mark of respect.
Yet Sinclair, who represented England at the World Cup in 2002, penned a tweet in protest of the monarchy. The 49-year-old wrote: "Racism was outlawed in England in the 60's & its been allowed to thrive so why should black & brown mourn!! #queen."
Sinclair was condemned by many for expressing his opinion in the immediate hours after the Queen's passing. His employers talkSPORT responded to the tweet to assure listeners they did not agree with Sinclair's views and were investigating the matter.
"We have been trying to make contact with Trevor Sinclair following opinions expressed on his Twitter account. talkSPORT does not support those views expressed and is investigating the matter," confirmed the radio station.
talkSPORT later added: "Trevor Sinclair will not be on air while we carry out a thorough investigation into the circumstances and timing of his tweet. While we respect the right of Trevor Sinclair to express his opinion on his personal Twitter account, talkSPORT does not endorse the tweet."
Sinclair has since apologised for the tweet. "My tweet yesterday was ill timed at a time when the royal family, and many around the world were grieving for the Queen," he tweeted. "I apologise for any offence caused to those mourning The Queen."
Sinclair continues to be criticised on social media for his initial tweet. Responding to the talkSPORT pundit's apology, former Notts County owner Alan Hardy wrote: "You’re an absolute disgrace Sinclair. Don’t insult us with your half hearted, forced apology about ill timing. Racist bigotry has no room in my world or any air waves that I listen to."
British Olympic medalist Kelly Sotherton has described the ex-midfielder's apology as "forced". She tweeted: "A forced fake apology doesn’t cut it... apologising for the backlash or genuinely insulting a mourning family?"
Sinclair has worked in the media since retiring from professional football in the summer of 2008 after making 660 club appearances and earning 12 caps for his country. He spent most of his career in the Premier League with Queens Park Rangers, West Ham and Manchester City, also representing Blackpool and Cardiff in the EFL.
Tributes have poured in for the Queen since her passing. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer told the House of Commons on Friday: "She did not simply reign over us, she lived alongside us. She shared in our hopes and our fears, our joy and our pain, our good times and our bad.
"Our Queen played a crucial role as the thread between the history we cherish and the present we own... In times when nothing stood, but worsened or grew strange, there was one constant good, she did not change."
* This weekend, the Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror celebrate the life of Her Majesty the Queen with a commemorative special filled with all the key moments from Britain’s longest reigning monarch. Be sure to pick up your copy of the Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror to get both pullouts.
