Thai-Ghanaian player calls out referee in Facebook post
A referee of the 3rd division Thai professional football league has been suspended by the Football Association of Thailand over alleged racist comment toward a Thai-Ghanaian player during a game last Sunday (October 29).
Association president Somyot Poompanmoung said on Tuesday that the association’s disciplinary committee will investigate the incident and take strong measures if the referee is found to be guilty. In the meantime, the referee will be suspended from duty, he added.
The match on Sunday saw the host, Prachin Buri City FC, beat Pluak Daeng United FC at 3-0 at the C.K. Stadium in Rayong province.
After the game, Abdulkordiri Hamit, a 22-year-old Thai-Ghanaian player for Prachin Buri City, posted on Facebook that a referee had directed a racial slur at him during the game.
The first referee allegedly called Abdulkordiri, also known as Abdul, “Ai Dam” in Thai as he loudly scolded Abdul to stop lying on the field. “Ai Dam” is a derogatory term for a Black person.
In his post, Abdul noted that he can speak Thai and understood what the referee had said.
“I never get angry when people called me that. But you are a referee. You should have used better words,” he wrote.
Following Abdul’s post, Prachin Buri City FC’s official Facebook page issued a statement in support of their player.
“Insults on race, religion or ethnicity should not happen in Thai football,” said the club’s statement, adding that this is not the first racial discrimination against Abdul, who has been a Thai national since birth.
The statement called for referees to control their emotions and display better judgement than an average person during the game. The football club added that it would continue to protect victims of racism even if they were not their players.
