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The original was posted on /r/soccer by /u/Sparky-moon on 2026-04-03 08:16:25+00:00.
Original Title: [Athletic] John Terry is Chelsea’s captain, leader, legend and an England great. But his recent liking of anti-immigration social media posts has been criticised by anti-racism groups and caused dismay at Chelsea, where he works as an academy mentor.
Summary:
Those questions multiplied after the recent blitz of headlines caused by Terry using his Instagram account to signal his apparent approval for a proposal by a radical right-wing political party for a nationwide ban on burqas in the United Kingdom.
Did he not realise it was going against Chelsea’s own inclusion policy? Had it passed him by that the club set up a Muslim supporters group last year? Or that the modern-day Chelsea, in the words of Piara Powar, one of the sport’s leading anti-racism campaigners, is “very much centring its identity on being a London club and everything that means”?
Kick It Out, football’s biggest anti-racism organisation, has also felt strongly enough about it to speak publicly. Inside Chelsea, it has caused dismay.
If you are not familiar with Lowe, he is the former Southampton chairman who went into politics with Reform UK before becoming the subject of a police investigation for alleged threats towards the party’s chairman, Zia Yusuf. The case was eventually dropped and Lowe, citing “false allegations” and a “brutal smear campaign”, formed his own party, deploying extreme anti-Muslim rhetoric and calling for a policy of mass deportation.
One of his social-media posts, liked by Terry, promises to “deport millions” and that “the entire power of the British state would be deployed”.
The counter-argument is that, as a high-profile employee of Chelsea, Terry is representing his club, as well as working in an environment featuring different ethnic backgrounds. Indeed, Chelsea’s academy staff hosted an Iftar party just a week earlier for players and Muslim fans marking Ramadan. Another event was held at Stamford Bridge, involving 400 people, to celebrate Eid.