Following a successful appeal by the FA, John Yems has had his suspension extended until January 5, 2026. The FA previously charged Yems with 16 breaches of FA Rule E3.2 for comments to Crawley players that “included a reference to ethnic origin and/or color and/or race and/or nationality and/or religion or belief and/or gender” between 2019 and 2022 while he was manager. Yems admitted to one accusation and was found guilty of 11 of the remaining 15 by an independent regulatory committee, resulting in a 17-month ban. However, the FA filed an appeal, claiming that the sentence was insufficient and that the panel had made a judgment that no rational body could have reached. The panel’s decision that Yems was “not a conscious racist” was “fundamentally disagreed with” by the FA.
“We applaud the independent appeal board’s decision to bar John Yems from any football-related activities until January 2026. This is the longest-ever ban imposed on an English football player for discrimination, and it follows our decision to appeal and dispute the independent regulatory commission’s verdict following the initial hearing in January,” an FA spokesperson said after John Yems had his ban extended. “We strongly disagreed with their original penalty, as well as several of the features of their judgment, which we considered were fundamentally inappropriate for the gravity of John Yems’s offenses. We are glad that the independent appeal board determined that certain findings of the independent regulatory commission were unreasonable, as there were multiple instances of inherent and blatant racist language.”
“This is a heartbreaking situation for the victims, and we hope that the conclusion of this appeal will assist to offer some closure. We also hope that by doing so, anyone who has experienced or witnessed discrimination in the game would be encouraged to report it,” the spokesperson added. “Everyone should be able to play the game in an environment free of discrimination and know that individuals in positions of responsibility and authority can be trusted to lead a safe and positive culture free of harm. Where discrimination occurs, we will always make every effort to ensure the necessary consequences are implemented and, where appropriate, education is available to transform mindsets and continuously improve football culture.”
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