Yaya Toure disappointed as Fifa disband anti-racism task force

Yaya Toure has expressed his disappointment with FIFA's decision to disband its anti-racism task force.

The FIFA Task Force Against Racism and Discrimination was set up in 2013 and wound up on Sunday, with the world governing body saying it had achieved its mission.

Toure, who was a consultant to the task force, referenced the World Cup in 2018 in Russia, where there has been a history of players receiving racist abuse, and said the letter he received from FIFA "does not fill me with confidence".

The Manchester City midfielder said in a statement on his personal website: "When I received the letter telling me the FIFA task force was to be discontinued I was very disappointed.

"The letter listed the good work that had been carried out as a result of the task force's advice and recommendations. So my question is, after failing to deal with racism sufficiently for decades - why stop when something is beginning to work? Are FIFA being complacent ahead of a World Cup in Russia? This makes no sense.

"The task force brought together the expertise of campaigners, football administrators and players. It was a resource that gave FIFA the expertise they clearly did not have before.

"As a group, the task force could help shape and put in place the most effective initiatives to keep players and fans safe. The task force could question when FIFA were not delivering on its promise to do as much as they could in this area.

"My only hope is that FIFA have thought this through. The letter I received does not fill me with confidence. It will be the fans and players that suffer if FIFA do not get this right."