Community Shield: Joe Hart and Chris Smalling kick off anti-discrimination campaign
Manchester duo take centre stage for Report It! as Chelsea and Arsenal kick off new football season at Wembley
Manchester will play a starring role at this afternoon’s Community Shield at Wembley – even though Chelsea are playing Arsenal in the season-opening match.
City keeper Joe Hart and United defender Chris Smalling are two of the faces on a big-screen film that will urge fans to report discrimination.
The Report it! Campaign kicks off today with a 30-second message telling fans what channels to report matters to if they see or hear racist or discriminatory behaviour.
Former Chelsea favourite Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink – now manager of Burton – plus England Women’s World Cup stars Jodie Taylor and Eni Aluko are also featured.
Kick It Out have an app to report abuse anonymously and have seen a surge in complaints since it was launched.
Three Chelsea fans were recently handed five-year bans from attending football matches and another is banned for three years after a racist incident on the Paris Metro last season.