Juventus Condemns Racist Abuse Against Weston McKennie

Turin, Italy, Aug 25 (AP) - U.S. midfielder Weston McKennie faced racist abuse after Juventus secured a 2-0 victory over Parma in their Serie A season opener, as reported by the Italian club.

Juventus released a statement on social media, highlighting that McKennie was subjected to "discriminatory racist remarks by individuals in the away section" while he was warming down with his teammates on the pitch on Sunday.

“Juventus strongly condemns this incident and any form of racism, and will ensure full cooperation with the sporting justice authorities to identify those responsible," the club stated.

McKennie, who has been with Juventus since 2020, was introduced late in the match held in Turin, which also saw Canada forward Jonathan David marking his Serie A debut for Juventus with a goal.

In 2023, Fiorentina received a suspended partial stadium ban due to their fans directing racist and discriminatory chants at McKennie and other Juventus players.

The incident on Sunday adds to a troubling pattern of racism allegations emerging in European soccer.

Recently, FIFA President Gianni Infantino labeled two alleged racist abuses in German Cup games as “unacceptable.” His comments followed incidents involving Schalke's Christopher Antwi-Adjei at Lokomotive Leipzig and a Kaiserslautern substitute during a match at RSV Eintracht.

In another instance, British police detained a man suspected of racially abusing Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo during a Premier League clash on Aug. 16.

The arrest followed allegations that Semenyo, who is Black, reported being racially abused by a spectator during the first half of Bournemouth's match against Liverpool at Anfield.

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