Bellingham shines as England thrash Croatia, while Uefa weakens anti-racism stance
England beat Croatia 7-0 in Rijeka in a dominant Nations League performance, with Jude Bellingham prominent in a fluid, technically strong team. The result suggested England can be a serious force, though the writer cautions that Croatia’s performance offered limited resistance.
The match was supposed to be played behind closed doors as punishment for racist behaviour by Croatian fans at a previous game, but around 6,000 children and their designated adults were admitted. The article argues this loophole undermined Uefa’s anti-racism message, while also noting that England’s travelling support was restricted to about 100 fans.
- England thrashed Croatia 7-0 in Rijeka.
- Bellingham helped drive a polished England display.
- A crowd of children exposed a loophole in Uefa’s stadium ban.
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The Nations League is a competition for European national teams, organised by Uefa, European football’s governing body. England and Croatia are regular rivals, and Jude Bellingham is one of England’s leading midfielders.
Uefa can order matches to be played without spectators as punishment for misconduct by supporters. For this match, children and accompanying adults were allowed in despite the restriction, raising questions about how such sanctions are applied and what message they send about racism.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Allowing children and their designated adults into the stadium could be defended as preserving a family-friendly atmosphere and giving young supporters access to a major match, while still excluding the general public under the closed-door sanction. The restriction on England’s travelling support also suggests the match was not treated as an ordinary fixture.
The case against
A closed-door sanction is meant to impose a clear consequence for racist behaviour and show that it will not be tolerated. Admitting thousands of spectators through an exception may have weakened that message and made the punishment seem less meaningful, regardless of the children’s conduct or the family-friendly rationale.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Bellingham stands out for high-grade England but Uefa sends out wrong message on racism | Barney Ronay”.