Premier League stars have the power to force change and ‘Black Lives Matter’ shirt statement is a powerful start

LAST week I was invited to listen to a Premier League presentation to the 20 club captains on the return-to-playing protocols.

The idea was to bring them up to speed on what is happening, the measures in place to keep them safe and any rule changes — such as the increase from three substitutions to five.

It’s an excellent communication platform set up by the PL chairman and CEO to involve the players in every decision we make.

The presentation turned to Black Lives Matter and I was so moved by the passion and commitment the players voiced in wanting to back the cause in a way that was long-lasting, meaningful and that would make a difference to tackle the “disease of global racism”, so aptly put last week by another sportsman, Lewis Hamilton.

In times of tragedy and injustice, there is real power in influence.

Since the senseless death of George Floyd in the US, almost every person of influence, including many sportsmen and women, have taken to their social media platforms to express their thoughts, concerns and feelings about widespread racism that sadly still exists in the world.

This abhorrent injustice has caused a tremendous amount of hurt and pain, which has rightly brought the subject of discrimination sharply into focus on a national and global scale.

At West Ham our first priority has been to acknowledge this hurt and to reach out to anyone within the West Ham United family and in our community who have been impacted.

We have had some insightful conversations internally to help us understand how we share our views and represent those we serve, including advice and support.

These are hard conversations but we continue to be fully ready to face them, listen, learn and educate ourselves with the aim of becoming an even more inclusive organisation.

They are in a unique position of being able to back a cause that can have a permanent and impactful change on society to make things better for future generations.

Karren Brady on Premier League stars

The Premier League captains have now channelled that hurt, frustration and anger into positive activism, using their massive reach and influence.

Five players alone have 120million Instagram followers between them.

I can’t even begin to calculate what the other 495 will add to that total number, but many hundreds of millions more.

The players feel empowered to share their sentiments in such an open and honest way with their followers in the hope of creating lasting change.

This is an age where you can educate, influence and inspire and make a real difference for generations to come.

Some Premier League club captains are only in their early 20s but understand that, by speaking out against racial injustice, they are in a unique position of being able to back a cause that can have a permanent and impactful change on society to make things better for future generations.

Wearing a Black Lives Matter message on their shirts is a peaceful and powerful message that will have a massive global impact, with every Premier League match being broadcast across the globe, reaching 212 territories and 643 million homes.

At West Ham, our players will today stand together at London Stadium and show the world exactly what we represent by posing for a (socially distanced) squad photograph in support of the fight against racism and discrimination.

That message is so important but equally crucial to our football club is that we back it up with ongoing action of real focus and substance.

Our Equality Group met last week to discuss that action and identified a number of internal initiatives that will ensure we continue to challenge ourselves, asking the question, ‘Are we doing everything we possibly can?’, and devoting ourselves to forging a better future for everyone in our community.

We have to tackle these issues head on and work hard to make lasting change — something we are all determined to do.