• Gesture said to be ‘abusive or indecent or insulting or improper’
• Striker has until Thursday to respond to FA charge
• West Brom sponsor Zoopla ends deal in light of Anelka’s action
Nicolas Anelka has been charged by the Football Association for making a gesture that was alleged to be “abusive or indecent or insulting or improper” during the match against West Ham on 28 December last year.
An FA statement said: “It is alleged that, in the 40th minute of the fixture, Anelka made a gesture which was abusive and/or indecent and/or insulting and/or improper, contrary to FA Rule E3[1].
“It is further alleged that this is an aggravated breach, as defined in FA Rule E3[2], in that it included a reference to ethnic origin and/or race and/or religion or belief.”
Anelka has until 6pm on 23 January 2014 to respond to the charge.
The minimum suspension for the offence is five games though the FA could make it more.
Anelka made the gesture, commonly interpreted as a “quenelle”, during a goal celebration against West Ham United last month. The “quenelle” has antisemitic connotations and has been described by some as an inverted Nazi salute, although Anelka has insisted he was merely showing solidarity with the French comedian Dieudonné M’Bala M’Bala, who brought the gesture to prominence, and that it was an anti-establishment gesture lacking any racist intent.
Dieudonné, however, has a chequered past – he has been prosecuted by the French government for insulting the memory of Holocaust victims and for holding antisemitic views. He was also recently banned from performing in Nantes.
As the FA’s protracted investigation dragged on, West Brom’s £3m-a-year sponsor, the property website Zoopla, announced that it would sever all ties with the Premier League club at the end of this season.
In a statement released on the eve of Albion’s Premier League 1-1 draw with Everton at the Hawthorns on Monday night, Zoopla – co-owned by the Jewish businessman Alex Chesterman – said it had been reviewing its position ever since the Frenchman made the gesture.
The shirt sponsorship deal was due to expire at the end of the season but Zoopla, which was reported last week to have contacted the club to express dissatisfaction with Anelka’s actions, opted to go public with its decision on Monday afternoon, after informing Albion in writing that it would not be seeking to renew its agreement for the 2014-15 campaign.
Albion issued a statement later in the day in response: “West Bromwich Albion has been fully aware since the sponsorship agreement came into force in June 2012 that its partnership with Zoopla could expire this summer and therefore has been planning accordingly.
“Zoopla has today informed the club in writing that it does not wish to extend its sponsorship deal. The club will now actively seek a new Official Sponsor for next season.”
The FA brought in an expert to help decide on whether charges should be brought and has spent several weeks working on the case due to its sensitivity.
A three-man independent regulatory commission will now be appointed to deal with the case – either to decide on the sanction if Anelka admits the charge or to hold a disciplinary hearing if he denies it.
- West Bromwich Albion
theguardian.com