If you really want to apply zero tolerance, Blatter, take the World Cup away from Russia

I find it fascinating that Sepp Blatter "calls for zero tolerance towards racism" (BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/24690192).

Blatter said: "If we are not able to go zero tolerance, we have failed."

Yet it was his organisation that gave the 2018 World Cup to Russia, the country in which Manchester City's Yaya Toure complained about monkey chants last week. IT is, of course, not the first time such incidents have been reported.

Blattter, speaking at a news conference in London, said: "In the first case there should be a warning, in a second case sanctions, disciplinary sanctions or to play without spectators. But the third one is that you have to deduct points or expel a team from a competition."

"The [Fifa] congress has said we have to go zero tolerance. The congress was standing, there was not one voice against that.

"Everybody wants it to happen. Now we have to apply it and have to have the courage to have to do it."

Fine words - applicable to clubs - but awarding the most high-profile sporting event in the world to the country of Russia is a deed that gives lie to those words.

The courageous thing to do would be take the World Cup away from Russia.

THAT would demonstrate zero tolerance to racism.

We all need to unite against racism

I have to say I am at a loss to understand why Rio Ferdinand, Jason Roberts and other players snubbed the wearing of the 'Kick It Out' T-shirt at the weekend.

What on earth was that meant to achieve?

If it was to get us all talking about the issue of racism in the game, then it has worked. But what else?

Rio's boss Sir Alex Ferguson was unhappy with the player for not uniting with his fellow Manchester United players in the wearing of the T-shirt.

Ex-England player John Barnes said: "If [Rio is] brave enough to go against Ferguson, then he's brave enough to say who he is unhappy with," said Barnes.

"I can't see that [the players] are unhappy with Kick It Out."

Perhaps Ferdinand thinks that Kick It Out should have done something about John Terry (who racially abused Ferdinand's brother Anton), but Kick It Out have no such powers.

Jason Roberts said that he would not wear a T-shirt before Reading's game with Liverpool because he felt that Kick It Out was not being "strong enough".

This seems ill-advised to me.

Talk of a separate Players' Union for black players also seems mis-guided.

We all need to unite against the scourge of racism in football. Break-away groups and protests against those trying to do the right thing are not the way to proceed.

Both Serbia and England to be charged

The scenes following the England Under-21 team's win over Serbia on Tuesday were disgraceful. As England's players naturally celebrated their late winner with some exubernace, there was nothing that could possibly excuse the Serbian players and support team from running over and trying to disrupt those celebrations.

It seems there was some racial abuse from the crowd, and it was little wonder that Danny Rose was so angered by everything that was happening round him that he kicked the ball into the crowd. That the referee booked him for that (second bookable, so Rose was sent off) was farcical given what was going on nearby, with Tom Lees being slapped around the head by Serbian players on at least two occasions.

I hear that UEFA is going to charge the Serbian FA with alleged racist chanting by fans and to charge both associations over the behaviour of players at the end of the game. Let's hope that UEFA also investigate and charge Serbia for the missiles that were thrown towards the England players as they celebrated their victory.

We will see what the results of those charges are.

The Serbian FA tried to deny accusations of racist chanting, no doubt fearing a worse fine than the ridiculous £16,000 fine it received for racist chanting by fans in 2007.

Serbia have a track record in this area. It needs to be stopped.