Follow us on @WorldSportCNN and like us on facebook
CNN
—
Why always him?
Mario Balotelli’s knack for attracting the wrong kind of headlines shows no signs of slowing down after the enigmatic striker was accused by the English Football Association of racially stereotyping Jews and black people in a post about social networks.
The FA is investigating Balotelli’s repost of a Nintendo character Super Mario image that had the words “jump like a black man and grab coins like a Jew” underneath.
“Mario Balotelli has been charged by the FA in relation to a recent social media post,” the statement read.
“The Liverpool player is alleged to have breached FA Rule E3[1] in that its publication was abusive and/or insulting and/or inappropriate.
“It is further alleged that this is an ‘aggravated breach’ as defined by FA rule E3.[2] because it included a reference to ethnic origin and/or color and/or race and/or nationality and/or religion or belief.
“The player has until December 15, 2014 at 6 p.m. to respond to the charge.”
Balotelli quickly deleted the Instagram image, before tweeting, “My mum is Jewish so please all shut up,” a reference to his adoptive mother, Silvia.
He apologized on Twitter on Tuesday, explaining that the message “was meant to be anti-racist with humor.”
He added: “I now understand that taking it out of context can have the opposite effect. Not all Mexicans have mustaches, not all black people jump high and not all Jews like the silver.
“I used a cartoon made by someone else because it had Super Mario and thought it was funny and not offensive. Again, I’m sorry.
Liverpool have said they plan to speak to Balotelli, who has missed the club’s last three games with a groin injury he suffered on international duty in November.
“We are aware of the post which has since been promptly deleted by the player,” Liverpool said in a statement.
However, former FA executive Simon Johnson has called on the FA to punish 24-year-old Balotelli.
“We abhor all forms of racism, wherever found,” Johnson, who is the current chief executive of the UK Jewish Leadership Council, told The Daily Telegraph.
“We call on the FA to investigate this offensive social media post and take action where necessary if we are to succeed in eliminating racism from football.”
In Italy, Balotelli was frequently the victim of racist abuse in stadiums, while in September Merseyside Police investigated racist remarks on Twitter made to Balotelli after he posted a message during the 5-3 defeat of Manchester United versus Leicester City.
Balotelli is yet to score a Premier League goal since joining Liverpool from AC Milan in the summer transfer window, although he did find the net against Ludogorets in the Champions League as well as against Swansea in English League Cup.
The minimum ban for race-related rule breaches is five games under FA social media guidelines.
Read: Balotelli apologizes
