British Asians in association football include British citizens with heritage or joint-nationality of any Asian country; there is a long history of British Asian football players in England particularly, dating back to the Victorian era, albeit in low numbers. In modern times the proportionately low number of British Asians in association football has received significant media attention, and has seen some clubs announce plans to explicitly target young British Asian players.[1][2] Prominent British Asian players have included Frank Soo, Neil Taylor, Zesh Rehman, Jimmy Carter and Michael Chopra.

In October 2017 the BBC reported that out of 3,000 professional footballers in England, only 10 were British Asian.[3] In 2019, academic Daniel Kilvington suggested a figure of 10 British Asians out of a total of 4,000 professional players in the English game.[4] By contrast, at the time of the 2011 census around 7.5% of the population of England was of Asian descent – a ratio of footballers mirroring this would be 300 out of the 4,000.[5]

History

Players

Early players

The earliest documented British Asian players were the Cother brothers who appeared for Watford in the late 1890s, their father was an Indian man from Mumbai.[6] Later in the 20th century the British Chinese players Frank Soo and Sammy Chung had prominent careers. Soo became the first ethnic minority player to represent England, albeit in Victory International matches that were not included on full senior records; he went on to have a long coaching career, particularly in Sweden where he won the Allsvenskan with Djurgardens IF in 1955.[7] Chung played over two hundred league matches for Watford and went on to manage Wolverhampton Wanderers in the 1970s and Doncaster Rovers in the 1990s.[8]

Roger Verdi, of Indian origin, decided to change his name because of racism, and had to move to the United States to start a professional career in 1972.[9][10]

Premier League

Jimmy Carter, who had played in the Premiership in 1991, had Indian heritage and was therefore the first British Asian to play in that league. However he did not disclose his heritage,[11] and until he did so, Zesh Rehman, of Pakistani origin, and Michael Chopra of Indian origin, were both claimed to be the first British Asians to play in the Premiership, in 2003 and 2004 respectively.[12][13] Rehman later launched his own Foundation in May 2010, with the intention of helping young British Asians in football.[14][15]

Modern club football

A Commission for Racial Equality survey in 2004 found only seven professional British Asian footballers playing in the UK; the same survey also found only ten British Asian players at Premier League academies.[16] By February 2008 the number of professionals had dropped to just five, and less than 1 in 100 of young players in Academies throughout the entire English football league system were Asian.[17] Current professionals, such as Adnan Ahmed, have publicly spoken out about the lack of fellow Asians in the sport.[18]

Anwar Uddin, of Bangladeshi origin, was the first British Asian to captain a side in any of the top four divisions of English League football.[19]

In 2011, British-Pakistani footballer Kashif Siddiqi founded the Kashif Siddiqi Foundation, with the aim to encourage increase the participation of British Asians in association football.[20]

In October 2013 the Football Association announced plans to encourage an increase in British Asian players and coaches.[5][21]

In December 2015, Yan Dhanda, of Indian heritage, signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Liverpool.[22]

Easah Suliman became the first player of Asian heritage to captain an England football side, having done so at Under-16, Under-17 and Under-19 levels,[23] Suliman played every game at centre back in the England Under-19s victorious UEFA European Under-19 Championship campaign in July 2017, scoring the opening goal in England's 2–1 final victory over Portugal.[24]

On 28 November 2017, Hamza Choudhury made his Premier League debut for Leicester coming on as substitute in the 83rd minute of a home win against Tottenham Hotspur. He is the first player of Bangladeshi descent to have played in the Premier League, as well as the only Bangladeshi to currently play in the Premier League.[25]

In February 2019, Adil Nabi said that he wanted to be an inspiration to other British Asian footballers, in the same way that Cyrille Regis and Laurie Cunningham had done for black players.[26]

In October 2019 there were "just 12 players of South Asian heritage across the Premier League and the English Football League".[27]

On 29 October 2020, Hamza Choudhury scored a 39th-minute volley against AEK Athens in the UEFA Europa League, becoming the first British Asian footballer to score in the Europa League.[28]

In December 2021, Shadab Iftikhar became the first British Asian to become a senior manager in Scotland when he took charge of Fort William.[29]

On 8 December 2021, Zidane Iqbal came on as an 89th minute substitute in Manchester United's final UEFA Champions League group stage match against BSC Young Boys to become the first ever British Asian footballer to play in a Champions League finals match, being of Pakistani and Iraqi descent.[30]

In June 2022, Mal Benning spoke out about being a role model for South Asian players.[31]

In November 2023 it was announced that the number of professional players in English football had rises for second year in a row.[32] In March 2023 they made up 0.45% of the 5,000 professional players.[33]

International football

Correct as of 2022, Neil Taylor is the only British Asian to have won full senior international caps for one of the home nations, making 43 appearances for Wales between his debut in 2010 and last match in 2019. He also represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics.[34]

Frank Soo, of Chinese heritage, played for the England wartime team and remains the only player of East Asian heritage to do so.[35]

In August 2007, trials were organised by the Pakistan Football Federation in Rotherham, South Yorkshire for British Pakistanis players to attend a training camp with the Pakistan national team.[36]

Clubs

There are a number of Asian-specific football teams such as London APSA, Sporting Khalsa and Sporting Bengal United, who became the first Asian clubs to play in the FA Cup in 2005.[16]

In October 2007, clubs in the Football League began out-reach programmes into Asian communities to attract new fans.[37]

In March 2009, Premier League club Chelsea announced plans to target young players from Asian communities.[38] Two players found on the trial later signed with Southend United and Leyton Orient, and in May 2010 Chelsea launched a second initiative, with the aim to find six young British Asian players.[39]

Fans

In December 1999, a Scottish Asian football fan publicly spoke out about the racism he had encountered at Rangers.[40]

Research compiled by the Premier League in March 2009 concluded that more British Asians were attending games than ever before.[41] However, research in 2013 by the BBC found that only 1% of fans of teams in the North West of England are Asian, despite making up 20% of the population of some areas.[42]

Officials

Jarnail Singh, who is of Indian descent, has been described as a "trailblazer" for Asian referees.[43]

In January 2023, Bhupinder Singh Gill became the first Sikh-Punjabi to serve as a Premier League assistant referee.[44]

The Asian Football Awards

Launched to recognise the outstanding contribution to both the professional game and grass roots initiatives by individuals and groups across the UK with South Asian heritage, the awards focus on the positive efforts made in the football industry.[45]

Organisations

The Football Association has held meetings on the matter of British Asians in association football,[46] and they launched a campaign in 2013 to increase British Asians in football,[47] though in March 2014 it announced plans to increase the number of British Asians in football would be delayed.[48] FA chairman Greg Dyke admitted in December 2014 that attempts to increase Asian participation in the sport had failed.[49]

In January 2012 the inaugural Asian Football Awards were held.[50]

Racism

In April 2019 British Asian footballers spoke out about the racist abuse they had encountered.[51] In August 2019 Yan Dhanda said that the racism he has encountered as a British Asian footballer inspires him to play his best.[52]

List of British Asian footballers

The following is a list of notable British Asian footballers – those who have participated at professional or international level – organised by ethnic heritage.

NameHeritageDebut[53]International detailsNotes & references
Husin, NoorAfghanistan2016Senior caps for Afghanistan
Kouhyar, MaziarAfghanistan2016Senior caps for Afghanistan
Choudhury, HamzaBangladesh2015Youth caps for England[54]
Ahmed, ShahedBangladesh2004[55]
Uddin, AnwarBangladesh2002[56]
Chung, SammyRepublic of China1951
Soo, FrankRepublic of China1933Full caps for the England wartime and Victory International sides during and shortly after World War II. The first player of East Asian descent to play for any England side.
Jack CotherIndia1897Played for Watford and Watford St. Mary's in the Victorian era with his brother Edwin. Jack also went by the name John. Their father was an Indian man from Mumbai.[6][57]
Edwin CotherIndia1898Played for Watford and Watford St. Mary's in the Victorian era with his brother Jack. Their father was an Indian man from Mumbai.[6][57]
Heppolette, RickyIndia1967First Asian to play in the Football League[58]
Bains, RikkiIndia2006
Batth, DannyIndia2009[5][59][56]
Benning, MalIndia2012[5][56]
Carter, JimmyIndia1987First Asian to play in the Premier League, but did not disclose his background at the time.[11][56]
Chopra, MichaelIndia2000Youth caps for EnglandIn August 2014 Chopra stated that he wanted to play for India at international level.[60][56]
Dhanda, YanIndia2018Youth caps for England[22]
Dosanj, AmanIndia1999Youth caps for England WomenFirst British Asian to represent England in official matches at any level.[61][62]
Jhooti, PermiIndia1997
Juttla, JazzIndia1997[63][64]
Luthra, RohanIndia2023First goalkeeper of South Asian descent to play in the EFL Championship[65]
Sansara, NetanIndia2008Youth caps for England
Sekhon, AaronIndia2011[66][67]
Singh, HarpalIndia2001
Taylor, NeilIndia2007Senior caps for Wales[5][68][56]
Verdi, RogerIndia1972
Verma, AmanIndia2009[56]
Williams, RhysIndia2008Full caps for AustraliaBorn in Australia to a British father and an Indian mother
Williams, RyanIndia2011Australia U-20 capsBorn in Australia to a British father and an Indian Mother
Baggott, ElkanIndonesia2022Youth and Senior caps for Indonesia
Nasseri, NavidIran2018
Samizadeh, AlexIran2016
Walker, DennisIran1961The first black footballer to make a senior appearance for Manchester United.[69]
Iqbal, ZidaneIraq, Pakistan2021Full caps for IraqThe first British-born South Asian footballer to make a senior appearance for Manchester United[70]
Kasim, YaserIraq2010Full caps for Iraq
Al-Hamadi, AliIraq2021Full caps for Iraq
Jalal, ShwanIraq2000Full caps for England C
Ale, AsmitaNepal2018Youth caps for England Women up to U-19 level.
Rai, KibanNepal2023First Nepalese-heritage professional in English system[71]
Ahmed, AdnanPakistan2004Full caps for Pakistan[56]
Asghar, AdamPakistan2013[72]
Ashraf, ReisPakistan2009Full caps for Pakistan
Bashir, AtifPakistan2004Full caps for PakistanBorn in Germany to a British Asian father and a German Turkish mother.
Docker, AdamPakistan2007Full caps for Pakistan
Gondal, UsmanPakistan2006Full caps for Pakistan
Hamid, Harun Pakistan 2023 Full caps for Pakistan
Iqbal, AmjadPakistan2007Full caps for Pakistan
Khan, OtisPakistan2013Full caps for Pakistan
Khan, SabhirPakistan2009Full caps for Pakistan
Nabi, AdilPakistan2013Youth caps for England; full caps for Pakistan[26][73][56]
Nabi, Rahis Pakistan 2018 Youth caps for England; full caps for Pakistan
Nabi, SamirPakistan2016Full caps for Pakistan[26]
Rehman, ZeshPakistan2003Youth caps for England; full caps for Pakistan[56]
Sarwar, RashidPakistan1985[63][74]
Siddiqi, KashifPakistan2005Full caps for Pakistan[5]
Suliman, EasahPakistan2015Youth caps for England; full caps for PakistanFirst player of Pakistani heritage to captain an England side.[73]
Etheridge, NeilPhilippines2008Full caps for Philippines
Hartmann, MarkPhilippines2011Full caps for Philippines
Hartmann, MatthewPhilippines2006Full caps for Philippines
Gier, RobPhilippines2000Full caps for Philippines
Gould, ChadPhilippines2004Full caps for Philippines
Greatwich, ChristopherPhilippines2004Full caps for Philippines
Greatwich, PhilPhilippines2006Full caps for Philippines
Greatwich, SimonPhilippines2008Full caps for Philippines
Younghusband, JamesPhilippines2006Full caps for Philippines
Younghusband, PhilPhilippines2006Full caps for Philippines
Ali, MukhtarSaudi Arabia2017Full caps for Saudi Arabia
Ng, PerrySingapore2014[75]
Chow, TimTaiwan2015Capped at senior level for Chinese Taipei, the name for Taiwan in international sport[76]
Chunonsee, MikaThailand2007Youth caps for Wales; full caps for Thailand
Ramasut, TomThailand1996Youth caps for Wales
Waite, JamieThailand2004Full caps for Thailand
Mohamed, KaidYemen2003

The 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham deals with issues relating to British Asians in football.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Gordon Parks (7 September 2014). "Asian stars are football's missing men". Daily Record. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  2. ↑ Olivia Blair (1 November 1997). "Football: They think they've no chance before even kicking a ball". The Independent. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  3. ↑ "Son challenges dad: Why couldn't I go to Man Utd trial?". BBC News. 2 October 2017.
  4. ↑ Kilvington, Daniel (2019). "Two decades and little change: British Asians, football and calls for action" (PDF). Soccer & Society. 20 (4): 584–601. doi:10.1080/14660970.2017.1366902. S2CID 148687225.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Mandeep Sanghera (29 October 2013). "British Asians in football: FA steps up recruitment drive". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 "THE VERY FIRST ASIAN…". Our Game Too. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  7. ↑ White, Jonathan (13 December 2018). "Frank Soo Street hopes to put England's pioneering Asian footballer on the map". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  8. ↑ "Where Are They Now? A look at Wolves' UEFA Cup finalists 1971/72". Football League Paper. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  9. ↑ Harmit Singh Kamboe (June 2007). "Interview with Roger Verdi". IndianFootball.com. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  10. ↑ Shamya Dasgupta. "He played against Pele, Best, Banks, now he wants to coach here". IndianExpress.com. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  11. 1 2 "Nobody knew he was the Premier League's first British Asian" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  12. ↑ "The Premiership's first asian star: Zesh Rehman". The People. 17 May 2009. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  13. ↑ "Michael Chopra". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  14. ↑ Nikesh Rughani (7 April 2010). "Rehman targets helping British Asians into football". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 May 2010.
  15. ↑ "Zesh Rehman leading push for change". Telegraph & Argus. 1 August 2013.
  16. 1 2 "Asians in Football news". Let's Kick Racism Out of Football. Archived from the original on 17 February 2010. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  17. ↑ Northcroft, Jonathan (10 February 2008). "Why are there no Asian football stars?". The Times. London. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  18. ↑ "Ahmed wants rise in Asian players". BBC Sport. 21 November 2008. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  19. ↑ Patrick Nathanson (8 August 2007). "Anwar Uddin to lead Dagenham and Redbridge". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  20. ↑ "Kash Siddiqi plans Foundation for Asian footballers in UK". Football Pakistan. 23 November 2011.
  21. ↑ Mandeep Sanghera (29 October 2013). "Is English football set for an Asian breakthrough?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  22. 1 2 Mandeep Sanghera (18 December 2015). "Liverpool sign Yan Dhanda on professional deal". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  23. ↑ "Aston Villa's Easah Suliman hopes to set standard for England's Asian footballers, Ed Aarons". The Guardian. 18 November 2015. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  24. ↑ "Under-19 2017: Portugal-England". UEFA. Archived from the original on 7 June 2018. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  25. ↑ "Premier League: Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur – 2:1". 28 November 2017.
  26. 1 2 3 "Adil Nabi: Ex-West Brom midfielder on playing with Roberto Carlos, Greece & inspiring youngsters". 4 February 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  27. ↑ "British Asians in football: What happened to Football Association strategy?". 31 October 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  28. ↑ "AEK-Leicester Match Report?". 29 October 2020 – via www.uefa.com.
  29. ↑ "Shadab Iftikhar joins Fort William to become Scotland's first senior manager of South Asian heritage". Sky Sports.
  30. ↑ "Zidane Iqbal becomes first British South Asian to play in the UEFA Champions League". skysports.com.
  31. ↑ "Mal Benning: 'We need more South Asian role models in football'". 1 June 2022 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  32. ↑ "South Asian pro player numbers rise again - PFA" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  33. ↑ "'We need to see a lot more South Asian players' says Stevenage youngster". 10 March 2023 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  34. ↑ Din, Tusdiq (13 November 2015). "Why is Swansea's Neil Taylor the only British Asian in the Premier League?". mirror.
  35. ↑ "FRANK SOO – DERBYSHIRE'S FAMOUS CHINAMAN". Bygone Derbyshire. Archived from the original on 4 December 2008. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  36. ↑ Pramod Morjaria (1 August 2007). "Bend it like Beckham in Rotherham". BBC News. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  37. ↑ Niki Cardwell (28 October 2007). "Football clubs reaching out to Asians". BBC News. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  38. ↑ "Chelsea plot Asian talent trawl". BBC Sport. 26 March 2009. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  39. ↑ "Chelsea continue search for an Asian football star". BBC Sport. 27 May 2010. Retrieved 28 May 2010.
  40. ↑ "Fan's fear over 'racism at Rangers'". BBC News. 14 December 1999. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  41. ↑ Sukhi Hayer (2 March 2009). "Have Asians embraced the beautiful game?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  42. ↑ Rahila Bano (23 March 2013). "Why Asian fans shun clubs like Oldham and Burnley". BBC News.
  43. ↑ "Refereeing". Asian Football Network. Archived from the original on 10 December 2009. Retrieved 21 October 2009.
  44. ↑ "Premier League: Assistant ref Bhupinder Singh Gill on making history". 6 January 2023 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  45. ↑ "Asian Football Awards 2017". Asian Football Awards 2017.
  46. ↑ "Increasing Asian participation in football". The Football Association. 11 July 2011.
  47. ↑ "British Asians in football: FA steps up recruitment drive". 29 October 2013 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  48. ↑ Mandeep Sanghera (4 March 2014). "British Asians plan delayed by FA as it seeks further talks". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  49. ↑ "FA chairman Greg Dyke: More Asians needed in football". BBC Sport. 18 December 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  50. ↑ Simon Parker (17 January 2012). "Former Bantam in running for top Asian award". Telegraph & Argus. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
  51. ↑ "Asian footballers call out 'systemic racism' in grassroots football". 24 April 2019 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  52. ↑ "British Asian footballer Yan Dhanda: Racist abuse drives me on even more". Sky News.
  53. ↑ Club or international debut – whichever came first
  54. ↑ Tanner, Rob (12 October 2017). "Why Leicester City's local lad Hamza Choudhury really stands out". leicestermercury.
  55. ↑ Player profile – "The youngster has his roots in Bangladesh"
  56. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Daniel Kilvington (2016). British Asians, Exclusion and the Football Industry. Routledge. p. 3. ISBN 9781317569039. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  57. 1 2 "120-year-old Watford FC handbook and trailblazing Cother Brothers". Hillingdon & Uxbridge Times. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  58. ↑ Sessions, George (5 August 2021). "Ricky Heppolette would love to see more Asian players follow in his footsteps". Belfast Telegraph.
  59. ↑ "Wolves skipper Danny Batth left frustrated by his quest to play for India". Sky Sports. 7 July 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  60. ↑ "Michael Chopra: 'I want to be Indian football's Tendulkar'". BBC Sport. 22 August 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  61. ↑ Urmee Khan (10 November 2006). "The unsporting life". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  62. ↑ Daniel Burdsey (2007). British Asians and football: culture, identity, exclusion. Routledge. ISBN 9780203966860. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  63. 1 2 Ben Carrington; Ian McDonald (2001). 'Race', Sport, and British Society. Psychology Press. p. 38. ISBN 9780415246293. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  64. ↑ Scott McDermott (12 November 2011). "Rangers are right to tap into Indian market by looking at stars, says former player Jazz Juttla". Daily Record. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  65. ↑ "Cardiff City's Rohan Luthra becomes first 'keeper from Britain's South Asian community to play in Championship". Sky Sports.
  66. ↑ Chris Roberts (16 July 2011). "I want to be a role model to young Asians who love football, says Partick Thistle starlet Aaron Singh Sekhon". Daily Record.
  67. ↑ Gordon Parks (25 January 2012). "Partick Thistle young star Aaron Sekhon shortlisted for top Asian award". The Glaswegian.
  68. ↑ Ben Proctor (17 February 2012). "Football in India is growing – Swansea City's Neil Taylor". Goal.com.
  69. ↑ Gleave, Bill Hern and David (30 October 2020). "Dennis Walker: Manchester United's first and only black Busby Babe". The Guardian.
  70. ↑ "Zidane Iqbal: Manchester United's first British South Asian player" – via www.bbc.com.
  71. ↑ "Gurkha's son aims to inspire - and play for Wales" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  72. ↑ "Interview: Tony Asghar denies 'untoward' dealings at Dundee United". The Scotsman. 16 February 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  73. 1 2 Ed Aarons (18 November 2015). "Aston Villa's Easah Suliman hopes to set standard for England's Asian footballers". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  74. ↑ "Kilmarnock FC: Legend Eddie Morrison dies". Daily Record. 3 June 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  75. ↑ House, Future Publishing Limited Quay; Ambury, The; Engl, Bath BA1 1UA All rights reserved; number 2008885, Wales company registration (24 May 2017). "Perry Ng signs new Crewe deal, keen to play for Singapore". FourFourTwo. Archived from the original on 10 September 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  76. ↑ Henderson, Mark (8 July 2020). "Yaki Yen and Tim Chow look like they'll never play for Taiwan again". The Tofu Bowl. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
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