West Ham youth coach Mark Phillips attended the hard-right march over the weekend
West Ham United have suspended youth coach Mark Phillips after he attended a far-right Democratic Football Lads’ Alliance march in London on Saturday.
Phillips’ attendance at the march was revealed by The Guardian, following a number tweets by the West Ham Under-18s coach about the rally, in which he defended the group against claims it was far-right.
Saturday’s march in central London was organised against “rape gangs and groomers”, “veterans treated like traitors” and “establishment paedophile rings”, according to the group’s Facebook event, however the protest erupted into violence as attendees clashed with police.
A number of protesters were also filmed giving Nazi salutes during the rally and chanting in support of Tommy Robinson and Donald Trump.
There is no suggestion that Phillips was involved in any of the disturbances, but a spokesperson for anti-racism group Kick It Out confirmed that the organisation had passed information regarding Phillips’ presence at the march onto the club, with the matter now under investigation.
In a statement, a West Ham spokesperson said: “West Ham United is an inclusive football club. Regardless of gender, age, race, ability, religion or sexual orientation, every supporter within our diverse fanbase is warmly welcomed at London Stadium, free to enjoy watching their team play football without fear, discrimination or abuse.
“We have a zero tolerance policy to any form of violent or abusive behaviour. We continue to protect and cherish those values. And we remain committed to ensuring that every single member of the West Ham family feels safe, respected and included.”
It follows West Ham being forced to sack their head of recruitment, Tony Ferguson, in May after he was alleged to have told football agents that the club didn’t want to sign any African players.
Ferguson had said in an email that he was against signing players of African descent because they “sometimes have a bad attitude” and “cause mayhem” when they are out of the team.
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