Football
ESPN staff 9y

FA 'very concerned' over Wigan chairman Dave Whelan's comments

The Football Association is "very concerned" over the controversial comments Wigan chairman Dave Whelan made when defending the hiring of Malky Mackay as manager, and will treat their investigation as a "priority."

Whelan told the Guardian that he did not find offensive some of the text messages sent while Mackay was at Cardiff and for which he is currently under investigation by the FA.

The Wigan chief's comments were widely condemned as anti-Semitic, while he also came under fire for defending Mackay's use of a racial slur to refer to Cardiff's Malaysian owner Vincent Tan.

Whelan has since apologised for what he said, but the FA have confirmed an investigation is underway with a statement on their official website: "The FA is very concerned to read about the comments that have been attributed to Dave Whelan. We take all forms of discrimination seriously.

"As with all such cases, this will be dealt with as a priority. The investigation is already under way and the FA's governance division have written to Mr Whelan. He has three working days to respond."

Meanwhile, the main representative body of British Jews has called Whelan's comments "outrageous" and labelled his apology as "half-hearted."

The Board of Deputies of British Jews vice-president Jonathan Arkush said in a statement: "Dave Whelan's comments about Jews are outrageous and offensive, and bring the club and the game into disrepute. His half-hearted apology does not go far enough. You cannot insult a whole group of people, and then say, 'I would never insult them,' and hope that's OK.

"We need to see a proper apology and full recognition of the offence caused. Whelan, in his role as chair of a football club, has a responsibility to set the tone for both his players and supporters. Racism and anti-Semitism will prevail on and off the pitch if it's acceptable and unchallenged in the boardroom.

"We will be taking up the matter with the Football Association and Kick It Out."

Information from the Press Association was used in this report

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