Mark Clattenburg has expressed relief after being cleared by the Football Association of directing a racist comment towards Chelsea midfielder Mikel John Obi, describing the ordeal as the most frightening experience of his life. The FA announced that there was no case for Clattenburg to answer, following an investigation into claims made by Chelsea's Ramires that the referee called Mikel a 'monkey'.
The referee's union, Prospect, has demanded a full apology, compensation, and a donation to an anti-racism charity from Chelsea. Meanwhile, Mikel has been charged by the FA with using threatening or abusive words and/or behaviour during Chelsea's home defeat to Manchester United. The club stated that Mikel does not deny the charge but will request a personal hearing, facing a potential three-match ban.
Clattenburg paid tribute to the support of his colleagues and said he 'couldn't wait' to return to refereeing. 'The messages of encouragement from those inside and outside of the game have helped me through the most stressful time of my professional life. To know you were innocent of something but that there was the opportunity for it to wreck your career was truly frightening,' he said. He added that racism has no place in football but stressed the importance of fair processes in investigations.
The FA stated that Ramires' evidence was not supported by any other evidence and was contradicted by other witnesses. Neither Clattenburg nor the three other match officials heard the alleged comment, and video evidence did not support the claim. The FA believes the Brazilian acted in good faith but concluded that the evidence did not meet the threshold to charge Clattenburg.
Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) general manager Mike Riley said Clattenburg is 'completely exonerated' and will return to duty shortly. In light of the incident, all communications between referees will now be recorded. Chelsea accepted the FA's verdict but defended their decision to pursue the complaint, citing a duty of care to act responsibly when allegations are reported by employees.
