I was the victim of a vile racist comment in an EFL match for the second time – it's sickening
OMAR BUGIEL was called a 'P*** b*****d' during a League Two match last Saturday and said: “This is not the culture I want my two little girls to grow up in.”
The AFC Wimbledon star was racially targeted at Bradford and on the same day Birmingham's Juninho Bacuna was assaulted during their match against West Brom.
3
Bugiel, 30, who has daughters Bria, four, and Bonnie, two, with wife Lauren, said: 'It's sickening to think someone would say something like that.
“I can't believe this is still happening in football – and especially in a multicultural city like Bradford.
“This is not the culture I want my two little girls to grow up in.”
Towards the end of the goalless draw at Valley Parade on Saturday, referee Ross Joyce stopped proceedings after a spectator heard him abusing the Wimbledon striker.
Bugiel said: “I went down after making a mistake and took time to get up because I got kicked in the shin.
“The home crowd became angry and noisy because they wanted the match to resume quickly.
“But just as we were about to take the free kick, the referee stopped to talk to one of his assistants.
“It wasn't until a few minutes later, when the match had ended, that the referee came to me and said: 'Omar, something racist has been said to you, the linesman has picked up on it'.
Even though I didn't hear the racist abuse on Saturday, it's disturbing to think that it was directed at me just because I look a little different.
Omar Bugiel
“It was then explained that an audience member had said, 'Get up, you bastard.'
“I was shocked because it is the second time that specific word has been used against me.
“When I was at Sutton we played Barrow in April 2022 and it was said to me face-to-face. That really shocked me because I had never experienced racism on a personal level.
“Although my teammate Coby Rowe was racially abused during a match at Crawley that season.”
Berlin-born Bugiel was raised in Germany by his Lebanese father Khaled and Polish mother Ewa. He moved to Britain at the age of 16 after his mother paid for him to study English in Chichester.
The winger, who fully embraced and enjoyed English culture, became a professional footballer for Forest Green, Sutton and the Dons after doing the hard work in non-league with Selsey, Burgess Hill, Bognor Regis, Bromley and Worthing.
He became the first Lebanese international to play in the EFL and score at Wembley – after scoring for Bromley in the 2018 FA Trophy final.
Bugiel, whose side faced Barrow on Saturday, said: “Even though I didn't hear the racist abuse on Saturday, it is disturbing to think that it was directed at me just because I look a little different.
“The language could have been heard by others of a certain ethnicity or by children in the crowd. It's very sad.
“At Barrow, a middle-aged man pointed the P-word at me.
“I immediately reported that incident to the referee. The perpetrator was arrested by the police for questioning and it turned out that he had been drinking.
“I completely understand that emotions can run high in football, but I don't understand how someone can then turn that into racist abuse.
“I would never even think of criticizing someone I've never met.
“The ironic thing about Saturday is that before kick-off they even showed 'Show Racism the Red Card' on the screens.”
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has called on clubs that have abandoned a match due to racism to abandon the match.
But Bugiel is not convinced that this is the answer. He said: “Nobody wants a match to be forfeited and I don't think that would necessarily work.
“However, if it gets to the point where the abuse from the terraces doesn't stop, they may have to play a game behind closed doors or have a points deduction if they continually step out of line.
“Ultimately it is up to the home team to keep the spectators under control.”
Bradford are working with West Yorkshire Police to identify the fan and confirmed that anyone found to be racist in their stadium will receive an immediate life ban.
3