London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 10, 2026

England's anti-racism gesture jeered in Hungary

England's anti-racism gesture jeered in Hungary

England players were jeered when they took a knee before their Nations League match in Hungary, despite most of the crowd in Budapest being children.

Last June, Hungary were ordered by Uefa to play three games behind closed doors as punishment for discriminatory behaviour by their fans at Euro 2020.

But Saturday's fixture saw over 30,000 spectators at Budapest's Puskas Arena.

"I have no idea why people would choose to boo the gesture," England manager Gareth Southgate told Channel 4.

The Hungarian FA used a Uefa regulation that allows children up to 14 to attend for free if accompanied by an adult.

Channel 4, which is broadcasting the match in the UK, asked Uefa for a statement on the matter, but were told by European football's governing body that it would not be making any comment.

Southgate added: "The first thing, that [taking the knee] is why we do it, to try to educate people around the world. The young people can't know why they are doing it, so they are being influenced by older adults.

"The Uefa decision is for other people to decide. We have made our stand as a team, everyone knows what we believe in and stand for. It is a night where I need to focus on the football."

Defender Conor Coady said: "It is massively disappointing. It's important people understand why we are doing it. It's not something we want to hear. We want to keep pushing the message."

Hungary have also been ordered to play two games behind closed doors by world governing body Fifa because of racist abuse directed at England players during the World Cup qualifier in Budapest on 2 September.

Raheem Sterling and Jude Bellingham were both subject to the abuse, with a flare and other objects thrown on to the pitch by the home fans at the same venue.


'There was no escaping the jeering'


BBC Sport chief football writer Phil McNulty at the Puskas Arena

The booing could clearly be heard around the vast arena moments before kick-off.

The noisy crowd was respectful to both national anthems so it was even more of a sharp contrast that England's public gesture opposing racism and discrimination was met with obvious hostility from such a young gallery.

England's players rose quickly from taking the knee but there was no escaping the jeering, which was laced with heavy irony as the whole point of Hungary's punishment - playing behind closed doors - was to act as a deterrent to further racist and homophobic behaviour by fans.

It will also pose questions of how Uefa's rules can be massaged so easily that a game that was meant to be played without a crowd can end up in this situation.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Merz Rebukes AfD Expansion in Saxony-Anhalt
King Charles Confirms Prince Harry and Meghan Will Remain Private Citizens
Labour Selects Former Child Refugee for By-Election in Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Foreign Private Equity Accelerates Takeovers of London-Listed Industrial Companies
NHS Maternity Care Faces Scrutiny Over Support for Mothers After Caesarean Births
BBC Warns Staff Strikes Are Likely Amid Job Cuts and Programme Cancellations
English Housing Affordability Improves to Best Level in More Than a Decade
UK Health Commission Proposes Framework for Wider AI Adoption Across NHS
Labour Faces Pressure for Wealth Tax Ahead of Autumn Budget
Metropolitan Police Open Criminal Investigation Into Alleged Foreign Donations to Reform UK
UK Police Deploy Riot Officers After Anti-Immigration Unrest in Portsmouth and Dover
UK Defends Sanctions on Israeli Settlements Despite Diplomatic Retaliation
UK Air Traffic Control Failure Cancels More Than 1,000 Flights and Disrupts 65,000 Passengers
Compass Urges £10 Million Wealth Tax and Public Ownership Ahead of UK Autumn Budget
UK Government’s Devolution Plans Face House of Lords Scrutiny
Maldives Seeks New Chagos Sovereignty Talks With UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham
UK Airports Face Continuing Disruption After National Air Traffic Control Failure
UK Bans Imports From Israeli Settlements and Expands Sanctions on Iran
British Chambers of Commerce Forecasts UK Growth of 1% as Investment Remains Weak
UK Suspends Local Government Reorganisation Decisions and Cancels Planned Shadow Authority Polls
UK Parliament Opens Inquiry Into Gaps in Climate Change Preparedness
Andy Burnham and Xi Jinping Hold Talks on Trade, Security and British Consular Cases
UK Joins France, Canada and Other Nations in Measures Against Israeli West Bank Settlements
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Networks
British Chambers of Commerce Calls for Business Rate Reform and Productivity Support
UK Farmers Warn Dry Summer Could Reduce Crop Yields and Push Up Food Prices
UK Rail Networks Hit by Widespread Delays After Major Signalling Failures
Matt Clifford Resigns as ARIA Chair After Conflict-of-Interest Scrutiny
UK and France Say Joint Border Operations Have Prevented More Than 48,000 Irregular Channel Crossings
UK Core Inflation Remains Above Expectations as Utility and Commodity Costs Stay Elevated
Jaguar Land Rover Considers Up to 4,000 UK Job Cuts Amid Automotive Industry Pressure
UK Government Pauses Local Authority Reorganisation for Legal Review
UK Public Borrowing Reaches £1.8 Billion in July, Adding Pressure Before Autumn Budget
Chancellor John Healey Puts Regional Devolution and Fiscal Discipline at Heart of UK Growth Plan
Counter-Terrorism Police Lead Salford Investigation After Two Teenagers Charged
UK Rejects Financial Reparations for Transatlantic Slavery
UK and Egypt Step Up Diplomacy Over Escalating West Bank Tensions
UK Pauses Council Reorganisation Across Four English Counties
Jaguar Land Rover Plans 4,000 Job Cuts in Major UK Restructuring
UK Unveils Planning and Regulatory Overhaul to Speed Infrastructure and Economic Growth
University of Bristol Opens £500 Million Innovation Campus
Families Give Evidence to Independent Review of Sussex Maternity Failures
Sweden Confirms Deportation of 458 British Citizens Over Post-Brexit Residency Rules
UK Launches £3 Million Challenge for Long-Duration Energy Storage
Reform UK Proposes £100 Billion in Spending Cuts and Brownfield Deregulation
Andy Burnham Warns Macron That EU Procurement Rules Could Hurt British Steel
Andy Burnham Faces Major Decision on Future North Sea Oil and Gas Drilling
SEND Support in England Projected to Reach One in 10 Pupils
England’s Housing Courts Struggle With Surge in No-Fault Eviction Cases
Violent Clashes Erupt in Portsmouth During Protest Against Asylum Processing
×