Former Queens Park Rangers manager Chris Ramsey has claimed that racism is not the biggest challenge that the sport of football faces and says that issues such as sexism and homophobia which transcend race are greater problems.
Ramsey was sacked as head coach of QPR in November on the same day that another black manager, Chris Powell, lost his job at Huddersfield, a double blow which prompted increased discussion of the issue of lack of black managers in English league football.
Chris Hughton at Brighton and Hove Albion, Ricardo Moniz of Notts County, new QPR boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, and Carlisle's Keith Curle are the only four black managers currently employed by the top 92 clubs in England and Wales, but Ramsey insists that there are bigger issues within the sport.
"Sexism and homophobia are far bigger problems because these discriminations exist in all races," he told The Sun. "Our society is homophobic and sexist, and football reflects society. The sport is one big goldfish bowl, and everything that happens in society happens in a football stadium or the game in general.
"Neither Chris [Powell] nor I lost our jobs because of racism. We spoke to each other and agreed that we did not want the race issue brought into the equation. We lost our jobs because of the ongoing thing that happens to all managers — you eventually get sacked if results are not what the club hoped for.
"We should be talking a lot more about equal opportunities. If you are a female coach and happen to be the best person for the job, you should get it [but] people are sexist. Gay footballers are too scared to come out in public because of the bigotry and discrimination they fear that they will face."
Ramsey was dismissed by QPR after six months in charge following a caretaker spell at the end of last season with the club then 13th in the Championship.
Tom Nightingale
