Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers have announced the punishments they have handed out to their fans who engage in anti-social behaviour, including discriminatory and abusive conduct.
Arsenal said that they have banned 31 members and season-ticket holders for abusive and discriminatory behaviour since the start of last season.
Of those 31 fans, 13 were for actions in the stadium, while 18 were for actions online thanks to the club’s work with data science company Signify Group.
“We take all forms of abuse and discrimination extremely seriously – whether online or in and around the stadium,” Arsenal CEO Vinai Venkatesham told the official club website.
"New technology is changing the way we’re able to support our communities and create a safer space for the entire Arsenal family"
“While we are talking about a tiny minority of our supporter base, we must continue to take strong action against abusers who are identified as Arsenal season-ticket holders or members, including escalating to the police where appropriate.
“New technology is changing the way we’re able to support our communities and create a safer space for the entire Arsenal family.
“Our aim is to create an environment at Arsenal where everybody feels welcome, and we hope this action serves as a deterrent for those using abusive, threatening, and discriminatory language.”
Arsenal added that the banned individuals have been offered the chance to reduce the length of their punishments if they attend a one-to-one education programme run by Kick It Out.
Wolves' 'Mission One Pack'
Wolves announced a wider range of 57 sanctions for fans’ anti-social behaviour that ranged from smoking to physical assault and included racial and homophobic abuse.
It was published after a commitment made in Wolves’ equality, diversity and inclusion strategy “Mission One Pack” to improve transparency and reporting in line with the club’s aim to achieve advance level of the Premier League’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) advanced standard by 2026.
Gurpri Bains, the club's EDI manager, told the Wolves website: “It is important for our fans to know how seriously we take acts of anti-social, hateful and discriminatory behaviour, which is why we have taken the unprecedented step of publishing this season’s figures.”
