Burnley’s Hannibal Mejbri
Monday Feb 23, 2026. 11:10
Tunisian international and Burnley midfielder Hannibal Mejbri and France and Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana were both victims of racial abuse following Chelsea and Burnley’s 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
The Blues squandered an early lead, thanks to a 4th minute goal from João Pedro, after Fofana was sent off for a second yellow card in the 72nd minute.
The Clarets hit back in second-half stoppage time, with Zian Flemming pulling Burnley level to claim a point in London.
Following the fixture, Fofana and Mejbri were both the targets of online racial abuse, with Fofana posting screenshots of hateful messages he had received.
Both clubs released statements on their official social media accounts, denouncing and condemning the racism directed towards their players.
“Everyone at Burnley FC is disgusted by the online racist abuse directed at Hannibal following today’s Premier League fixture.
There is no place for this in our society and we condemn it unreservedly.
The Club continues to be unequivocal in its stance – we have a zero-tolerance approach to any form of discrimination.
The club has reported the post to Instagram’s parent company, Meta, and expects strong support from them, together with the Premier League and the Police, and will work to ensure that the individual responsible is identified and investigated.
Hannibal will receive the full backing from the Club and from the Burnley fans who we have already seen condemning the abuse.
There is no room for racism,” read Burnley’s statement.
Chelsea followed a similar vein, stating:
“The targeted racist abuse Wes has been subjected to following today’s Premier League fixture against Burnley is abhorrent and will not be tolerated.
Such behaviour is completely unacceptable and runs counter to the values of the game and everything we stand for as a club. There is no room for racism.
We stand unequivocally with Wes. He has our full support, as do all our players who are too often forced to endure this hatred simply for doing their job. We will work with the relevant authorities and platforms in identifying the perpetrators and take the strongest possible action.”
In response, Fofana posted a call for more to be done to stop racism in the game, criticising campaigns that have little to no effect on bringing a halt to abuse in the game.
“2026, it’s still the same thing, nothing changes. These people are never punished. You create big campaigns against racism, but nobody actually does anything,” Fofana stated.
Mejbri also responded, posting one of the offensive message he had received and stating:
“It’s 2026 and there are still people like that. Educate yourself and your kids, please.”
Source: BBC
By Nic Gleeson