Discrimination remains “deeply embedded” in English football, the chief executive of Kick It Out has said, with reports up 25% last season compared to the prior campaign.
The charity received 1,744 reports in 2025-26, up from 1,398 in 2024-25, while the number of incidents passed the 1,000 mark for the first time — reaching 1,255.
Reports and incidents differ in that one incident may be reported multiple times. The reports-per-incident ratio for 2025-26 was 1.39, according to Kick It Out.
Reports of online discrimination were up 5% to 650, professional game reports were up 41% to 636 and grassroots reports also up 41% to 458.
Kick It Out found reports of all types of abuse also increased — racism up 19%, sexism up 12%, anti-gay abuse rose 46%, anti-Semitism up 43%, ableism up 20% and Islamophobia up 88&
The charity’s chief executive Samuel Okafor said: “These figures show that discrimination remains deeply embedded across the game at a time when we’re also seeing rises in hate crime and divisive political rhetoric in Britain.
“But they also show that people are more willing to stand up to abuse when they see it, and it’s encouraging to see professional players set that example last season.
“While we recognise that there is a lot of good work ongoing in football to tackle discrimination, we will continue to work with football authorities, clubs, leagues, regulators and Government to ensure we match the courage shown to report abuse with clear and consistent action so that football is welcoming to everyone.”
Kick It Out received 142 reports of discriminatory mass chanting during the season, a 41% increase on last year and the highest number recorded. Reports included increases in racist, sexist and anti-gay chanting, alongside rises in transphobic and ableist chants.
The organisation also recorded a rise in reports involving anti-immigrant language, with terms such as “stop the boats” and “send them back” reported at all levels of the game. Kick It Out received as many reports of this nature in 2025-26 (39) as in the previous two years combined (37).
During the 2025-26 season Kick It Out delivered its 500th fan education session to those found to have discriminated in football, with a reoffending rate of 1.25%