Bristol Rovers player 'racially abused' during Cheltenham Town match, police say

Avon and Somerset Police are investigating reports that a Bristol Rovers player was racially abused during a match against Cheltenham Town on Saturday 9 December.

Police said a steward reported the incident to one of their officers during the second half of the League One match.

Two men who were among the away supporters at the Memorial Stadium were then removed from the ground by stewards.

Force football officer PC Mark Neal said: “There is no place in society for racial abuse or discrimination.

"We are treating the incident as a hate crime and we’ll work with both clubs to fully investigate what happened.

“The player was spoken to by an officer immediately after Saturday’s game. We have also notified the Professional Footballers’ Association too.

“We’d ask anyone with information about what was said or who was responsible to please come forward.”

Anyone with information regarding the incident is encouraged to contact 101 and quote reference 5223300697.