FIFA 20 joins Premier League's 'No Room for Racism' awareness campaign

By Andy Chalk
published

New jerseys and other cosmetics promoting the real-world anti-racism effort are coming soon.

Electronic Arts has unveiled new jerseys coming to FIFA 20 in conjunction with the Premier League's No Room for Racism campaign, an effort to bring awareness of, and help eliminate, racist abuse and other forms of discrimination in football—or, as we refer to it on our side of the water, soccer.

Along with the jerseys, EA will also add "special FUT Kits, stadium dressing, and LED boards all carrying the No Room for Racism" message. A launch date hasn't been announced, but the real-world No Room for Racism campaign will be on display at all Premier League matches from October 19-27.

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"Racism is not and never will be acceptable in sport or society," Jesse Lingard, a Manchester United midfielder and FIFA 20 Ambassador, said. "Everyone has the right to feel safe and included."

"It’s encouraging to see the Premier League demonstrate their ongoing commitment to tackling racism in football through their No Room For Racism campaign," Sanjay Bhandari, chair of anti-discrimination organization Kick It Out, said in a statement.

"As a passionate football fan and British Asian man myself, I’ve seen the unique reach and power that football and the Premier League has to challenge discrimination in society. Together with Kick It Out, the English Football League, The FA and the PFA, it has a vital role to play in promoting equality across the country."

Two of the players seen in EA's tweet, Tammy Abraham and Raheem Sterling, also took part in a new video promoting the campaign. And while racist abuse is, unfortunately, not uncommon in soccer or other professional sports, the need for the campaign was recently emphasized in a match between Bulgaria and England: It was stopped twice in the first half because of racist chanting by fans and stewards. Police have so far arrested six, according to the BBC, and have nine more under investigation.

Update: An EA rep confirmed that there will be no cost for the "No Room for Racism" kits. Information on how they'll be obtainable will be revealed later.

Andy Chalk
Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.

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