Jess Naz of Tottenham Hotspur and England has condemned the racially abusive messages she has received on social media.
Shortly after the end of Spurs’ Subway Women’s League Cup match against Aston Villa – during which she was substituted at half-time – she posted to her Instagram Stories: “I was going to wait till after the game to speak because I’m done being quiet. I was subjected to racial abuse in my DMs [direct messages]. Racism in any form is unacceptable and [it] is important to address this behaviour and ensure that steps are taken to prevent it from happening again.”
Her club immediately issued a statement in support.
“The club is disgusted by the racist abuse received by Jessica Naz via social media. Jess has spoken out against this disgraceful behaviour – and we stand by her in calling out this unacceptable and cowardly act. We are working with the appropriate authorities and social media platforms to identify the responsible party, and we will be taking the strongest action against them.
“There is no place for racism in our sport or anywhere in society. We stand with Jess.”
Yesterday was Naz’s 25th birthday. She has been at Tottenham for her entire career, including as a junior, except for a short spell with north London rivals Arsenal. The forward has achieved international recognition throughout the youth age groups and made her senior debut for the Lionesses in 2024.
“We need to find another way to tackle racism”
The incident follows the arrest of two men for sending abusive messages on social media to Jess Carter during this summer’s Women’s Euros, although as yet there have been no charges brought.
Carter said at the time: “From the start of the tournament I have experienced a lot of racial abuse. While I feel every fan is entitled to their opinion on performance and result, I don’t agree or think it’s OK to target someone’s appearance or race.”
She added: “My hope is that by speaking out about this it will make another positive change for all.”
She stepped back from her social media, leaving it to a team to manage, and the FA worked with police during the investigation.
Carter’s England team-mates issued a statement saying they would stop taking a knee before matches as they felt it was “clear we and football need to find another way to tackle racism”.
