Wolves becomes first football club fined for homophobic ‘Chelsea rent boy’ chant
Wolverhampton Wanderers have become the first club to be sanctioned by the Football Association (FA) over supporters engaging in homophobic chanting.
At a Wolves v Chelsea Premier League match in April, Wolves supporters were twice heard chanting “Chelsea rent boy” for “prolonged” period. Wolves have been fined £100,000 and had an 11-point action plan imposed by the FA.
Wolves’ 1-0 win over Chelsea at Molineux Stadium was marred by the homophobic chanting, and the club admitted that it had failed to ensure its supporters did not “behave in a way which is improper, offensive, abusive, indecent, or insulting with either express or implied reference to sexual orientation”.
The case was referred to an independent commission, which handed the club a significant fine.
The chair of Chelsea Pride, Tracy Brown, told PinkNews that the commission’s decision should serve as a “stark warning to fans and clubs” that “actions have consequences”.
Wolves accepted breaches to FA rule E21 following “a prolonged period of approximately 20 seconds each in the 61st and also in the 71st minutes” where a “large number of supporters” were engaging in the homophobic chant.
West Midlands Police arrested three people for alleged homophobic chanting during the match.
While Wolves could have received a fine up to £300,000, the club provided some mitigating arguments. The commission deemed Wolves’ response to the chanting to be inadequate overall and issued a “mid-range” financial penalty.
The commission stated that it received no evidence of the steps taken by stadium stewards or relevant CCTV footage, noting that “the Tiktok clip supplied by the FA appears to show the stewards not reacting to the chant at all”.
The 11-point action plan handed down by the FA must be implemented for the entirety of the 2023-24 season.
The commission was also less than impressed by Wolves’ announcement made over the tannoy, approximately 10 minutes after the first chants, saying: “Wolves would like to remind all supporters that it is a criminal offence to use abusive language, obscene chanting or abuse of any kind, such conduct may result in arrest or ejection”.
The commission called the language used by the club “weak”. It is thought that the announcement – far from helping matters – actually triggered the second wave of ‘Chelsea rent boy’ chants.
*‘This is a stark warning to fans and clubs that discrimination has no place in football’*
Brown, who also serves as the equality, diversity and inclusion representative on the Fan Advisory Board at Chelsea FC, said: “We welcome the independent regulatory commission that has imposed an action plan and £100,000 fine on Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“However, it does not stop there. There is plenty of work still ongoing behind the scenes and that will continue.
“Education will always be key. We must keep pushing and educating fans throughout all levels of football.
“This is a stark warning to fans and clubs that discrimination has no place in football, actions have consequences.
“The hate the LGBTQ+ fanbase can experience at football has to end. Homophobia, biphobia and transphobia has no place in the game.”
A statement on the FA’s website read: “An independent regulatory commission has imposed an action plan and £100,000 fine on Wolverhampton Wanderers for two breaches of FA rule E21 that happened during the 61st and 71st minutes of their Premier League game against Chelsea on Saturday 8 April.
“Wolverhampton Wanderers admitted that they failed to ensure their spectators and/or supporters – and anyone purporting to be their supporters or followers – conduct themselves in an orderly fashion, and do not use words or otherwise behave in a way which is improper, offensive, abusive, indecent, or insulting with either express or implied reference to sexual orientation.”