Anti-racism campaigns have resulted in leaflet, guidance, training and monitoring projects but "too often clubs and fans deny the existence of racism at their club and this inhibits any opportunities to tackle the problem".
The report, commissioned by UEFA and released this week, just a fortnight before the Brazil World Cup, urged clubs to fully commit themselves to eradicating racism and xenophobia from stadiums: “Only when they are fully committed will they be able to supports stewards, police and fan groups which challenge the problem in the stands.”
The report’s author, Dr Mark Doidge, Research Fellow in the university’s School of Sport and Service Management, called on fans, players, clubs, security forces, and national and international football organisations, the media and politicians to unite in the fight.
He said racism in the game was pervasive: "From Zenith St Petersburg fans declaring that their club should not sign anyone who was not Slavic to Juventus fans racially abusing Mario Balotelli, expressions of racism continue. They take different forms and are grounded in the rivalry that exists within football."
Dr Doidge, who has researched football extensively and wrote Football Italia: Italian Football in an Age of Globalisation, published this year, won a Rising Star award from the 91¶¶Òõ to continue research into the political activism of fan groups across Europe.
His UEFA report studied anti-racism in European football and he named Germany’s Borussia Dortmund (BVB) as an example of a club that has taken on board the anti-racism message. "It distributes leaflets to all fans clearly explaining what racist and far-right slogans are not permitted in the stadium. They provide resources and space in the stadium for a BVB project to educate young fans on racism, intercultural learning and civil courage (how to deal with conflict without violence). Participants have a stadium tour afterwards to link the club explicitly with these sentiments.
"They also support the ultras’ initiatives to visit Auschwitz, including loaning the team coach. Also important is the use of star players, and the head coach Jürgen Klopp in promotional material aimed at addressing the problem. This was underlined by the club's decision to take a far-right organisation to court to have the BVB logo removed from their website.
"This all signifies an unambiguous message that the club does not support racism, extremism and violence."
Dr Doidge recommended clubs to first identify racism problems at their stadiums, to step up education and support, and to share ideas to combat the problem. Fans should refrain from racism although he admitted this would not be an easy task: "Fans seek to differentiate themselves from their rivals in whichever way they see fit; sometimes this is through skin colour, nationality or religion. Challenging this culture will be difficult, so clear guidance is required."
He said: "Education of stewards and police is vital so that they recognise racism in the stadium and support fans trying to combat it. Monitoring is also very important to understand the extent of the problem and prevent denial by those in authority. The only proof that racism, anti-Semitism and xenophobia are taking place is to monitor it and have valid quantitative and qualitative evidence.
Dr Doidge urged clubs to speak to students and schoolchildren in relation to their various teams and to "take the initiative and present all teams together, so there is not the inter-club rivalry that may arise".
He added: "Football is a powerful tool to bring people of different backgrounds together. Fan groups in all countries organise football sessions and football tournaments. The quality of the contact experience is what helps to remove barriers and promote cross-cultural understanding.
"Football becomes the focus, but education and anti-racism messages need to be explicit within these."