Newcastle United on Monday condemned the racist abuse and threats of violence made by midfielder Joe Willock and said they will support any investigation to identify the person responsible and hold him to account.
England midfielder Willock, who is of Caribbean descent, has shared a screenshot of Instagram messages he received from a user who racially abused him and his family and threatened his life, following Newcastle’s 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Willock shared the messages to his Instagram Story, saying, «I pray that you and your family find God. And may He have mercy on you.»
Newcastle said this was not the first time the 26-year-old had received abusive messages.
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«Unfortunately, Joe has been through this before. Each time we have acted quickly to support him, and that has again been our immediate priority,» the club wrote on X.
“We quickly reported this matter to the police, and we will fully support any investigation to identify and hold the person responsible to account, wherever he may be.
“This can only happen with meaningful action from Meta, the owners of Instagram. We urge Meta to give police all the information they need to identify the perpetrator, and to do so quickly.”
Tottenham Hotspur striker Mathys Tel also faced racist abuse online in August. Two people have been arrested for racially abusing England defender Jess Carter online.
FIFA reported a rise in harmful online content targeting players and officials in November, saying it had stepped up efforts to combat the problem, warning national associations of follow-up action and blacklisting people responsible for abuse at future FIFA events.
Published on January 5, 2026
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