Fan banned from football for chant outside Old Trafford

Carl Drury used the homophobic chant towards some fans of The Blues ahead of a clash between the two clubs at Old Trafford.

According to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) the police arrested the 38-year-old from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, after they had heard what he was saying.

At interview he said he was saying it in response to something said by the fans of The Blues and he said he was unaware it was an offence as he had heard it before.

Drury admitted an offence under the Football Offences Act for which he received a £586 fine last year and, this week, he received a three-year ban from football.

Douglas Mackay, the CPS's National Lead Prosecutor for Sport, said: "We work with football authorities including the Premier League and the Football Association, police, clubs and charities to stamp out incidents of discriminatory chanting.

"We are sending a message that there is no place for this behaviour and that the so-called fans who engage in it face the risk of being excluded from the game they claim to love."

On May 24 of last year, the day before the clash between the two clubs, the LGBTQ+ supporters club Rainbow Devils appealed for an end to the use of the homophobic chant.

Previously they published an article on their website about why it is a homophobic insult.

The article on their website said: "During the late 60s and 70s Chelsea, in the West End of London, was a hub for LGBTQ+ people and it had several pubs and bars where queer people could be themselves in a homophobic cultural climate.

"The borough's LGBTQ+ scene meant it had a reputation for being a location where 'rent boys' would look to meet men for sex – specifically around Earl's Court – minutes away from Chelsea FC's Stamford Bridge football stadium. Thus the chant 'Chelsea Rent Boy' is a homophobic insult."

This article was written by Jack Tooth. To contact him, email jack.tooth@newsquest.co.uk or follow @JTRTooth on Twitter.