Schalke 04 strongly condemns racist abuse directed at Christopher Antwi-Adjei

In the 13th minute, Antwi-Adjei went to the touchline to take a throw-in when words were shouted that have no place on a football pitch or anywhere else. After Antwi-Adjei and Kenan Karaman raised the issue, the referee stopped the match so the home club could make a stadium announcement. Instead of showing understanding, sections of the home crowd booed Antwi-Adjei with every touch until the final whistle – an utterly incomprehensible and disappointing reaction.

Frank Baumann made a statement on Sunday evening on behalf of the entire board: “First and foremost, I feel very sorry for Christopher that he had to hear such words. We condemn this behaviour in the strongest terms and hope the perpetrator can be identified. Schalke 04’s fans and members have made a clear and unequivocal commitment in our statutes and mission statement to fight against discrimination and racism, and as a club and board we represent those values without compromise. We stand firmly by Christopher’s side.”

Antwi-Adjei himself spoke to the media after the game: “It’s very disappointing to have to experience something like this in this day and age. It’s not acceptable. I hope this person reflects on their actions.” The player has reported the incident to the police, who have begun investigations.

A subject that must be addressed

Head coach Miron Muslic made his position clear in the post-match press conference and interviews: “I’m disgusted by such comments. We can’t simply file this away after 120 minutes of football. This is an issue that has to be addressed. Chris told the team he had been racially abused, and as players and staff we tried to support him as best we could.”

Muslic’s message was clear: “We have to fight racism clearly and decisively. Too often it’s downplayed as the actions of a lone individual. I believe the whole stadium sensed what had happened – and yet they whistled. That is not a single person. Chris was booed every time he was on the ball afterwards. That’s the absolute lowest of the low. And yet he still played 120 minutes, battling through so many obstacles. Full credit to him for that performance.”

Captain Kenan Karaman also spoke out strongly: “This incident overshadowed the whole game. I realised straight away that something was wrong and signalled to the referee that we couldn’t keep playing under those circumstances. If it had carried on, we wouldn’t have continued. The referee reacted well, stopped the game and waited for a stadium announcement. Racism has no place in sport – or anywhere else.”

Schalke 04’s commitment to this fight is longstanding. Back in 1994, the club became the first Bundesliga side to include opposition to racism and discrimination in its statutes. The belief that hate and incitement have no place at Schalke is firmly embedded in our identity. Since the start of the 2019/20 season, our efforts to promote tolerance and diversity have been coordinated under the motto #STEHTAUF. Alongside the DFL’s themed week and the “!Nie wieder” initiative, Schalke continues to run annual awareness weeks to make a clear stand.