Euro 2024: Ian Wright & Lewis Hamilton speak on English media and systemic racism

Arsenal legend Ian Wright and Lewis Hamilton have spoken on the English media and what has been identified as systemic racism following the defeat of England in their final friendly match ahead of Euro 2024.

The English media received a huge backlash from football fans worldwide after Bukayo Saka had been made the face of the country's defeat in the hands of Iceland in the final preparatory match for England ahead of the highly anticipated Euro 2024 tournament.

Bukayo Saka had featured in just 25 minutes of the game and the Arsenal forward had his picture on the social media cover image of news outlets and newspaper cuts on sport as well. Fans were angered by the gesture with many stating that the English media took a racist approach in making black players the face of England's defeat.

This prompted a direct response from two of the biggest sports personalities in England.

Ian Wright reacts to speculations of systemic racism by the English media

Arsenal and England legend Ian Wright expressed his frustration about the situation on Twitter, urging fans to fully support the players during the finals in Germany. England suffered a surprising 1-0 defeat to Iceland at Wembley in their final warmup match before this summer’s tournament on Friday night.

Ian Wright took to his social media platform today, Saturday, June 8, 2024 to urge fans to show support to these players. His post on social media read, "Now more than ever let’s get behind & support these young people. We can all see what’s happening & who’s being set up to be the face of defeat. We are going to be gas lit with explanations & justifications, but those deciding who goes on the back pages know what they’re doing. Let’s keep our energy focused on giving these players pure love & support throughout the tournament."

Lewis Hamilton calls out the English media for systemic racism

Formula 1 legend Lewis Hamilton in a post on his social media platform has also reacted to the news as well. According to Metro UK, He shared a post on his Instagram story that read, "We need to hold the English media accountable for systemically vilifying Black players. The constant scapegoating of Black players needs to stop. This endemic racial discrimination has no place in football, yet countless news outlets suggest otherwise."

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