AMSTERDAM:  Theo Van Seggelen, secretary-general of international players’ union FIFpro, has supported Sepp Blatter’s comments about the fight against racism in football.

FIFA president Blatter had commented at the world federation’s gala on Monday about Kevin-Prince Boateng’s walk-off protest against racist abuse by fans in Italy last week.

Blatter has praised the Milan midfielder’s courage but added that such protests could not be a long-term answer to the issue.

Van Seggelen said: “We are very proud that the Milan  players all said: ‘Enough is enough. What happened was unique and was a good sign.

“But if  it is the Champions League final then the circumstances are different. We have regulations for that. The referee is the only one who can stop the game.”

He added that Blatter’s speech had been “a good balance . . . he did it quite well. It is not fair always to criticize him.”

FIFPro represents around 50,000 players in national unions around the world but they could not win the fight on their own.

Van Seggelen added: “”We are playing an important role and we are doing our best, but we will not change the world.”

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