WATCH: African Footballer Racially Abused, Thrashed By Crowd During Tournament In Kerala

Malappuram: A football player from Ivory Coast, Dairrassouba Hassane Junior, has accused spectators of racial abuse and physical assault during a recent Sevens football tournament in Kerala’s Malappuram district. A video circulating online shows a mob chasing and attacking Junior, while a bystander intervenes to shield him.

Mallapuram, Kerala 📍

A footballer from Ivory Coast was subjected to a mob attack.

He plays for Jawahar Mavoor club in Sevens Football tournament.

Footballer was chased assaulted & subjected to racial abuse by the spectators.

Mob also threw stones at the footballer. pic.twitter.com/05C8rXZe9w

— Shashank Shekhar Jha (@shashank_ssj) March 14, 2024

Junior, who was recruited to play for the Jawahar Mavoor club in the Sevens tournament, a popular variant of football in Kerala, alleges the crowd hurled racial slurs and pelted him with stones. He later filed a complaint with the Areekode police, stating, “The spectators called me an ‘African monkey’ and ‘black cat,’ and pelted stones which hit my head. I was attacked because of my skin colour, my race and I have been insulted.”

Local reports claim the incident stemmed from Junior kicking a spectator during the match. However, his allegations of racial abuse have sparked outrage and are being investigated by the police.

Sevens football tournaments frequently feature semi-professional foreign players, particularly from West Africa. These competitions are often organized by the Sevens Football Association (SFA) and played on smaller pitches with modified rules compared to traditional football.