Bulgaria captain Popov: Racism must be eradicated

Bulgaria captain Ivelin Popov has warned foreign players will not want to play in his homeland after the racist abuse that stained Monday’s Euro 2020 qualifier against England.

UEFA has charged the Bulgarian Football Union over the actions of some fans at Vasil Levski National Stadium during the 6-0 defeat, namely racist chants and Nazi salutes.

The game was halted twice before half-time due to the abuse and Popov, 31, was praised for remonstrating with a group of supporters at the interval.

Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford, who opened the scoring for England, tweeted: “Also been told what the Bulgaria captain did at half-time. 

“To stand alone and do the right thing takes courage and acts like that shouldn’t go unnoticed. #NoToRacism.”

Bulgaria head coach Krasimir Balakov, who claimed not to have heard the offensive chants, suggested after the match that Popov was addressing his team’s poor performance.

However, the Rostov midfielder left no doubt he was standing up against a blight on the game that “needs to be eradicated”.

“First, I tried to talk with the stewards who were supposed to control the situation,” Popov said, as quoted by the Guardian.

“We’re all suffering from that kind of behaviour. Do you think a foreign player would like to come and play in Bulgaria after what happened tonight?

“Racism is a world problem that needs to be eradicated. We’re all people regardless of the skin colour.”

On Tuesday, BFU president Borislav Mihaylov resigned after Prime Minister Boyko Borissov threatened to cut funding if he did not step down.