More Premier League players have rejected taking the knee before kick-off – with fans booing the anti-racism gesture as doubts over its impact continue to grow.
asserted
doubts → reject → impact
Bournemouth stars Rayan and Tyler Adams both refused to kneel alongside their team-mates before their game against Sunderland got under way.
Meanwhile, fans in the stands loudly booed the gesture as Leeds prepared to face Manchester United at Elland Road.
asserted
Leeds → refuse → Road
It comes after three players snubbed the token act on Saturday in a shaky start to the Premier League's 'No Room For Racism' month.
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players → come → month
Everton star Ainsley Maitland-Niles refused to kneel as his side hosted Chelsea in Saturday's early kick-off – despite other players doing so.
asserted
players → refuse → off
England defender Marc Guehi and Issa Diop did the same just before the game between Manchester City and Ipswich at the Etihad Stadium.
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Guehi → do → Stadium
Two Bournemouth players stood while their team-mates took the knee against Sunderland
Everton's Ainsley Maitland-Niles refused to take the knee before the game against Chelsea
The players' reasons for not kneeling are not yet known.
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reasons → stand → Chelsea
However, a number of footballers have expressed concern that the gesture has lost its value.
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gesture → express → value
In 2021, former Crystal Palace star Wilfried Zaha questioned the impact of taking the knee while ex-Brentford striker Ivan Toney said: 'We are being used as puppets.'
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We → question → puppets
Zaha added: 'I feel like taking the knee is degrading, because growing up my parents just let me know that I should be proud to be Black no matter what and I feel like we should just stand tall.'
asserted
we → add → knee
It is not the first time players have refused to take the knee.
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players → refuse → knee
Last year Dominic Calvert-Lewin did so in Burnley's fixture with Leeds, while Crysencio Summerville has been known to take the same action.
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Summerville → do → action
When Marcos Alonso was at Chelsea, he opted to point to the Premier League's 'No Room For Racism' badge on his arm rather than join his fellow players.
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he → opt → players
Ahead of the 2021-22 season, Luton indicated that they would not be taking the knee and instead all stood in the centre circle.
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all → indicate → circle
At that stage, players were still taking the knee ahead of every game – but that policy was stopped in August 2022.
Instead, a decision was made to limit the gesture to match rounds falling during the No Room For Racism initiative.
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decision → take → initiative
Man City's Marc Guehi, right, and Issa Diop, left, of Ipswich refused to kneel before kick off
Maitland-Niles took the knee for West Bromwich Albion in 2021 but has since opted against making the gesture
But it was agreed ahead of the season among Premier League captains that they would continue to perform the gesture twice per season.
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they → refuse → season
Pockets of matchgoers have expressed frustration at the gesture in the past.
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Pockets → express → past
In 2021 that led to Burnley captain Ben Mee hitting back: 'It gets to the point where if you're booing, it doesn't look good on those individuals that are booing.
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that → lead → individuals
'Support us in what we're trying to achieve as a group of players and a football community.'
Players and staff have the opportunity to perform the pre-match gesture for the next two gameweeks in October, with the Premier League reiterating 'the commitment to tackling discrimination and highlight the importance of diversity in football'.
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League → support → football
The move started in the UK in 2020 following the death of George Floyd in US police custody, which sparked the Black Lives Matter movement.
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which → start → movement
Last year, the Lionesses chose not to kneel before their Euro 2025 semi-final against Italy following racist abuse aimed at defender Jess Carter on social media.
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Lionesses → choose → media
Captain Lucy Bronze said the anti-racism message is not 'as strong as it used to be' following the abuse of her teammate.
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it → say → teammate
'It was driven by the group – obviously certain individuals more than others,' Bronze explained.
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Bronze → drive → others
'I think it was just the fact that we feel as a collective, is the message as strong as it used to be?
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it → think → collective
Is the message really hitting hard?
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message → hit → ?
Because to us it feels like it's not if these things are still happening to our players in the biggest tournaments of their lives.
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things → feel → lives
It's about putting another statement out there to say, it's something that still is a problem, it's something that still needs to be put right.
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that → put → statement
More needs to be done in football, more needs to be done in society.
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more → need → society
What that is right now as an individual, I don't exactly know.'
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I → know → individual
Ex-Chelsea star Marcos Alonso points to his 'No Room For Racism' badge rather than taking the knee
But
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Alonso → point → knee
the head of football's international anti-discrimination body, Fare, questioned the Lionesses' decision to stop taking the knee.
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head → question → knee
Piara Powar told BBC Sport: 'The players have taken a decision to stop taking the knee, which is their right.
'
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which → tell → knee
The taking of the knee is a powerful anti-racist act and this England team have shown leadership across Europe in taking it for so long.
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team → show → it
'Powerful actions are needed right now, to deal with the issues that are being played out as we speak.'
Guehi also made headlines in 2024 when, as Crystal Palace captain, he wrote 'I love Jesus' on a modified captain's armband given to all Premier League skippers to promote LGBTQ rights.
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I → need → rights
He was formally reprimanded for that, but followed it up by wearing an armband with 'Jesus loves you' written on it in the next game.
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Jesus → reprimand → game
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