Revelations at Collingwood FC are ‘tip of the iceberg’ of racial prejudice in Australian sport

February 2, 2021

Karen Sweaney

Legal / Sport /

Professor Richard Pringle, a sports sociologist at Monash University, has suggested that the racism revealed in a newly released report on Collingwood Football Club is “the tip of the iceberg and reflective of a broader pattern of racial prejudice in sport and Australian culture”.

With the AFL giant prompted yesterday into releasing its ‘Do Better’ review as a result of the leak to the ABC, Professor Pringle said the code should take a tougher stance on penalising clubs that fail to tackle systemic racism, commenting “Collingwood Football Club is a product of Australian culture, and it’s likely that racism is endemic at other clubs and sporting codes. Australia has made a poor attempt to address racism in recent decades and this is a real blight on our international reputation.

“If the AFL was serious about racism, it would introduce penalties for clubs that fail to address systemic racism within their ranks. Banning Collingwood for a season, for example, would make a huge difference. It would spark outrage but it would force clubs to make a genuine attempt to stamp out racism.

"Policies that penalise individuals for circulating racist stereotypes will not necessarily change a culture but will make individuals be more careful with the language that they use - which is a start. Changing cultural beliefs is more difficult. It requires critical education so that individuals know of the harms that racism can cause, and promote a desire to stand up to racism.

“As shocking as the revelations are in the Collingwood report, they are not a surprise, and I welcome the opportunity they present to start a vigorous conversation about racism in Australian culture.”

In addition to his calls for punitive measures, Professor Pringle feels clubs need to be re-educated on the problem of racism and why it cannot be tolerated in sport.

He also feels that club leaders should be carefully selected to ensure officials will stand up and make a difference on the issue of racism.”

McGuire “we’re not a racist club”
With Collingwood prompted to release the independent review of incidents of racism at the Club, President Eddie McGuire yesterday insisted “we’re not a racist club”.

Speaking to media after the release of the scathing report which found the AFL club had a culture of “structural racism” under his leadership, McGuire suggested that the findings represented a “historic and proud day for the club”, commenting “there are plenty of things we look back on now and wish we could have done better - at the time we did them as well as we thought we could.”

McGuire disputed the report’s key finding of systemic racism at the club, suggesting “there was not systemic racism as such, we just didn’t have the processes in place as we look back now to do the job we would like to have done.”

McGuire said the report showed the club was willing to accept it had made mistakes and was striving to be better, adding “this is not criticism, it’s a review.

“If we were found wanting in the past, it wasn’t because of intention. It might have been because of application or the systemic issues we have in a football club. It is not BHP, it’s a footy club.

“What’s happened on my watch is this: we’ve built a fantastic club, we have commissioned this report, we have built all sorts of mechanisms to get involved in the community ... we look back now and say, in 2021, what is it we need to do?”

However, the independent report, sparked by allegations by former player Héritier Lumumba, who has subsequently commenced legal action against the Club, said Collingwood has a problem with structural racism that its senior leadership must address, and it should publicly make amends to those who had paid a “very high public price” for speaking out about it.

The report, called Do Better, said making amends could included “reparations, compensation, public apology, and commitments to reform”.

The AFL said it would review the report’s findings and consider what now needs to be done in its role as the sport’s governing body.

AFL Chief Executive, Gillon McLachlan stated “the mistakes of the past show that racism in any form or on any level is a serious issue and should not be interpreted in any other way.

“This report is an important step in the change Collingwood is implementing and demonstrates the seriousness in which the club takes the issue.”

The report was commissioned by Collingwood’s board in June 2020 and has reportedly been with the Club since at least 17th December. Produced by University of Technology Sydney’s Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt, it recommends the club establish a truth-telling process around its past record and establish an expert group on anti-racism to guide it, including a robust racism complaints-handling process.

In December, McGuire announced he would step down as Club President at the end of next season after 23 years in the role.

Images: Former Collingwood player Héritier Lumumba, whose allegations of a racist culture at the Club prompted the review (top), Eddie McGuire (middle) and AFL Chief Executive, Gillon McLachlan (below).

About the author

Karen Sweaney

Co-founder and Editor, Australasian Leisure Management

Artist, geoscientist and specialist writer on the leisure industry, Karen Sweaney is Editor and co-founder of Australasian Leisure Management.

Based in Sydney, Australia, her specific areas of interest include the arts, entertainment, the environment, fitness, tourism and wellness.

She has degrees in Fine Arts from the University of Sydney and Geological Oceanography from UNSW.

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