AC Milan’s president says that because soccer is dominated by men, it can’t ignore abuse at home. Gazidis says that football should challenge the male-dominated culture of the game and be more proactive in dealing with social issues. After a number of home violence accusations in the English Premier League, including against Manchester United and England star Mason Greenwood, Gazidis says that football should be more proactive in dealing with social issues.
Asked by Becky Anderson on CNN, Gazidis said there is still so much more we can do.
There are certain types of problems that we can’t just ignore. When we have problems, we have to own them and acknowledge them, because that is the only way we can come up with solutions.
The 57-year-old Gazidis also thinks the game has a range problem that needs to be fixed at a senior level.
There are problems in society that can be seen in some ways in soccer. But, he said, “It can also help people think in a lot of different ways and give better examples.”
Soccer has a lot of problems, but one of them is that it’s all about men. We still see that in management positions all over the game. All of these positions, which I’m referring to as “technical staffs,” are both on and off the field.
“People like me, the CEOs, and the people in charge of the administration.” If we had more people playing soccer, I think we would be better off in so many ways.
AC Milan’s former striker Robinho was sentenced to nine years in prison last month by Italy’s Supreme Court for his role in a gang-rape in 2013, according to Reuters. Robinho, who now lives in Brazil and played for the club before AC Milan’s new manager, Tony Fernandes, took over.
It was “deeply unfair” for Robinho’s lawyer, Franco Moretti, to tell Reuters that the decision was.
The players in Italy’s Serie A have been wearing red marks on their cheeks to make people aware of domestic violence. They’ve also used the hashtag #unrossoallaviolenza to talk about it on social media (a crimson card to violence).
CEO of AC Milan, which has won 18 league titles in Italy, was Gazidis before that. He had been CEO of Arsenal for almost 10 years.
With the European Golf Club Association, he says that he and AC Milan have helped clear the way.
There are a lot of different ideas about how to be fair and inclusive, Gazidis said.
“And I think that understanding the problem better and having better ideas on how to fix it is a big part of this, because the male-dominated method and the cultural atmosphere of soccer are big parts of this.”
In addition, he said: “It’s not just this home violence and home abuse issue. We see a lot of things that need to be fixed in the game.” And you need to be proactive and figure out what the problems are before you can start taking steps.
