Between the faked injuries to force penalties and the riots that erupt for no discernible reason after many games, soccer is more of a joke than anything in the US. So what do you get when you cross the Champion’s League final between Chelsea and Manchester City and another joke of an organization here in the states called BLM? You get a very unhappy crowd not the least bit impressed with your pandering.
How the racist t-shirt company BLM and England have anything to do with one another is beyond comprehension, and it’s encouraging to see people seem to think as much as well. After over a year of being banned from entering stadiums and enjoying the usual game due to a cough that was going around, the 16,000+ spectators present at the final game weren’t having yet more political drivel poured down their throats like a 20 Euro concession-stand beer. This immediate and organic backlash from fans closely mirrors the steep decline in ratings seen in American sports as they continue their tone-deaf endorsement of a very unpopular movement responsible for even less popular riots.
And make no mistake, BLM messaging in English sports is political; spectators have even been threatened to be banned from the stadium for jeering at the stunt. Though they could hardly afford to kick everyone considering attendees are still only allowed in a limited capacity. You know that an idea is popular when you have to punish people for not going along with it.
Wilfred Zaha, a black player for Crystal Palace, had an uncommon moment of clarity among his fellow overplayed ball-kickers; claiming that the kneeling gesture was “degrading”, and is essential without impact in broader contexts in term of friction between the races. Zaha is correct, and it is even less believable when such messaging is being driven by stars and celebrities who, by virtue of their jobs, simply say and do what their managers tell them to. If someone is making enough money to avoid the kind of trouble they claim is so horrible, you can safely bet their tears are crocodilian.
