'When will it stop?' - league opener halted as Semenyo reports racism

In the first half of Liverpool's Premier League match against Bournemouth, Antoine Semenyo was suspended after someone in the Anfield crowd racially insulted him. As the Cherries briefly levelled, the 25-year-old scored twice in 12 second-half minutes before the reigning championsscored two late goals to win 4-2. A 47-year-old man was suspended from Anfield after reports of racial harassment directed toward Semenyo, which the police are now investigating.

We take incidents like this very seriously, and we will be proactively seeking football banning orders against those responsible,

the chief inspector said. Semenyo, a Ghanai national, took to Instagram after the game to display more racial abuse he had received, including the caption: "When will it stop? Meta, the Facebook company, said it is looking at and taking steps against any offending remarks and accounts. Referee Anthony Taylor stopped play at a 29th-minute Liverpool corner before speaking with both managers on the touchline after being alerted of Semenyo's assault. Virgil van Dijk and Adam Smith, the Liverpool and Bournemouth captains, were then called over to the benches to be briefed before the match resumed four minutes later, although the score was 0-0.

Bournemouth skipper Smith expressed shock over the incident, saying that something needs to be done and that more needs to get done.Totally unacceptable,he told Sky Sports.It's a shame that it happened in this day and age. I'm not sure how Ant has continued playing and arrived at these goals. He's a little bit down - something needs to be done. Taking a knee has taken no effect. We've all helped him, and we're hoping he'll be fine.

I wanted him to react [after scoring] - that's what I'd like to hear. I'd have gone straight over there. It shows what kind of man it is to bring it to the ref and continue. Fair play to Ant.

It's more rage

when Smith was asked to describe his emotions, and he had called for immediate intervention against the perpetrator.

I told the ref that I wanted him gone right away right away, but the police went and sorted it out,the defender explained.The Liverpool players were incredibly helpful to Ant and the rest of the team. Just so angry.

We've had discussions with the Premier League about it, so they've been considering it seriously. I'm not sure what else we might do.

We've been doing it for a long time now, and no one is sure how we're doing it. Ant is just so sorry for him, and he's had to do it. The entire world is watching, and it's shocking. "An anti-discrimination warning was read outside Anfield's stadium after the half-time whistle had blown.

The Football Association said in a statement released at full time:

We are extremely worried about the allegation of discrimination from an area of the crowd,

the Football Association revealed to the match officials during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Bournemouth.

Incidents of this kind have no place in our game, and we will collaborate closely with the match officials, the clubs, and the appropriate authorities to determine the truth and ensure that the correct action is taken.

Liverpool Football Club is aware of an allegation of racial abuse during our Premier League match against AFC Bournemouth,Liverpool said in a tweet after the game.We condemn bigotry and bigonism in all forms; it has no place in culture or football.

The club is unable to comment further as the alleged incident tonight is the subject of an ongoing police probe, which we will fully endorse.

The club made a clear statement,Reds head coach Arne Slot told Sky Sports,The team made a strong argument. We don't want this in football, but we don' t want it to happen in stadiums, especially not at Anfield.

We should talk about this for a long time because we don't want this at Anfield. The game [the game] gets a bit because our followers were amazing, particularly because it was a tribute to Diogo [Jota], who died in a car crash in July].

The match between Liverpool Football Club and AFC Bournemouth was briefly postponed during the first half due to a complaint of racial indignation from the crowd, directed at Bournsmouth's Antoine Semenyo.

This is in accordance with the Premier League's on-field anti-discrimination policy. The incident at Anfield will now be fully investigated. The player and both clubs are given our complete support.

Racism has no place in our game or anywhere in society. We'll continue to collaborate with stakeholder and authorities to ensure that our stadiums are a welcoming and welcoming environment for all. Kick It Out, a anti-racism group in Semenyo, said it stands in solidarity with Semen

Thirty minutes into the season's first Premier League game, and Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo is racially abused by someone in the audience,

the group explained. Mathys Tel, a Tottenham Hotspur student, was abused online for two nights. This is a stark reminder of an ugliest truth: black players face this every week.

We stand in solidarity with Antoine, and we can't thank him enough for his decision to score twice.

Anthony Taylor and his refereeing staff also deserve praise for responding quickly and decisively. We'll continue to push this disgusting conduct out of the game through sanctions, accountability, and education, but football has a long way to go. " Tottenham forward Tel was the object of racial abuse on social media after being one of two Spurs players to miss in their Super Cup penalty shootout loss to Paris St-Germain on Wednesday. During Euro 2025 last month, England defender Jess Carter was also the object of racial abuse. Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Bukayo Saka, three England internationals, were all subjected to bigotry in the aftermath of the Euro 2020 final.