Nadine Osman

A non-league football club is being investigated by Cheshire FA over an email which told a charity it would only work with it if it had ‘nothing to do with Muslims.’

International Learning Moment, which provides overseas aid, asked Ashville FC in Wirral if it could collect money outside the ground on match days.

A reply from the club’s email read, ‘We are interested as long as it has nothing to do with Muslims.’ The charity described the email, as a “direct form of discrimination.”

One of its members, Kurt Davies, said it was “disgusting” and the person who had approached the club in the first place was a Muslim and “very upset and shocked” by the response.

The message was sent from an email address carrying the non-league football club’s official title and the name of club volunteer Tony Buckley.
Buckley, who said his family set up the club in 1949, claimed the email account was “hacked.”

He said, “I can only apologise. I would never do that, and those are not my views. I was hacked, and I had to change all my passwords.”

Buckley added the charity would be welcome to fundraise outside the ground in Wallasey.

Spokesman for Cheshire FA, Damon Traverse told The Muslim News, “We are working to investigate this issue alongside the FA and both the club and the Charity. The decision of this investigation will be announced in due course.

We strongly condemn all forms of discrimination and encourage all fans and participants who believe that they have been the subject of, or witness to, discriminatory abuse to report it through the appropriate channels: The FA, our County FA network or via our partners at Kick It Out,” added the Spokesman.