FA launch an internal review into their disciplinary practices after John Yems racism affair
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EXCLUSIVE: FA launched internal review of their disciplinary practices after shameful John Yems racism case… prompted them to appeal against their OWN finding that the former Crawley Town manager was not a ‘conscious racist’
- The FA have launched an internal review of their disciplinary practices
- The organization appealed against its own findings in the matter of the racism of John Yems.
- The FA was furious when its own panel claimed Yems was not a ‘conscious racist’
The Football Association has launched an internal review of its disciplinary practices following the shameful case of John Yems racism.
The governing body has begun the process of reviewing how independent disciplinary panels involved in proceedings are constructed following the disturbing episode in which the organization appealed against its own findings in the case against Yems.
The FA was furious last month when its own independent panel claimed that Yems, despite being found guilty of 11 offenses for making racially motivated comments while in charge of Crawley Town, was not a “conscious racist”.
The three-person panel attending Yems’s hearing included former Notts County striker Tony Agana, Wolves club secretary Matt Wild and lawyer Robert Englehart KC.
And Sportsmail has learned that the controversial episode prompted FA officials to conduct an internal audit of its disciplinary procedures, particularly those involving alleged discriminatory behaviour.
The FA have launched an internal review of their disciplinary practices over the John Yems case
There is a particular focus on introducing measures to update the pool of candidates eligible to serve on independent panels.
Targeting professional footballers who have retired or are approaching retirement age to determine if they would consider such a role is one of the recommendations the FA is exploring.
The FA also wants to increase the number of former female footballers available for panel selection, while there will be a sustained emphasis on panelist training.
There is a feeling that the pool of people currently eligible to sit on FA disciplinary committees needs to be modernized to ensure they cover a broader range of beliefs that reflect contemporary society.
The FA have started the process of reviewing how the independent disciplinary panels that sit on the proceedings are constructed.
The proposals have been met with apprehension by members of the current commission, who fear that any move to have younger disciplinary panels could prove detrimental to their processes.
However, while plans to upgrade are at an early stage, there is significant will within the FA to ensure they avoid the embarrassing circumstances that saw them criticized by Yems.
In its written reasons, the independent regulatory commission said that Yems is not a ‘conscious racist’, something that sparked outrage in the football community given the sick nature of the insults.
The FA appealed against its own findings that Yems was not a ‘conscious racist’
Incredibly, the FA disagreed with its own independent panel’s ruling and launched an appeal against its findings.
The organization also believes that the 18-month ban placed on Yems was too lenient; they recommended a two-year suspension.
When contacted by Sportsmail regarding the disciplinary review, the FA declined to comment.