FA fines Ravel Morrison £7,000 for gay slur tweet
New West Ham player Ravel Morrison has been fined £7,000 by the FA after he sent a tweet earlier this month which included a gay slur.
The message on 19-year-old Morrison’s account had reportedly read: “Crack head? Go suck out u little faggot your a guy that talks if u see me you try slap me I’m in manchester every week.”
He is alleged to have been responding to a racist tweet directed at him which said he was addicted to crack cocaine.
The FA said he had been “warned as to his future conduct after he admitted a charge of using abusive and/or insulting words including a reference to a person’s sexual orientation”.
The teenage midfielder was signed to the club on 31 January for three and a half years and is yet to make an appearance on the pitch.
In early 2011, Morrison was ordered to pay £1,445 in costs and compensation after admitting two counts of witness intimidation.
The tweet came during national LGBT History Month which is focused on tackling homophobia in sport.
Last month, Leicester City player Michael Ball was fined £6,000 by the FA for anti-gay comments he made on Twitter.
Ball, 32, admitted the charge of bringing the game into disrepute with his expletive-peppered tweet directed at actor Antony Cotton.
During Cotton’s appearance on I’m A Celebrity, Ball reportedly told followers: “That fucking queer. Get back to your sewing machine in Corrie, you moaning bastard.”
Steele, 38, was not seen at a match on Saturday after writing: “I wouldn’t fancy the bed next to Gareth Thomas #padlockeda**ehole”.
