Wesley Fofana breaks silence on racist abuse he received after Chelsea draw vs Burnley

Wesley Fofana suffered racist abuse in the wake of Chelsea’s 1-1 draw against Burnley (Picture: Getty)

Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana said ‘nothing changes’ and ‘people are never punished’ after he and Burnley ’s Hannibal Mejbri were sent racist abuse following Saturday’s 1-1 draw.

Both players were targets of online attacks in the hours after the Premier League match at Stamford Bridge and shared images of messages they had been sent privately over Instagram.

It came days after UEFA began an investigation into claims by Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior that he was racially abused on the pitch by Benfica ’s Gianluca Prestianni during a Champions League game in Lisbon.

On Saturday night, Fofana – who had been sent off late in the game for two yellow cards – posted screenshots of messages he had been sent and wrote on Instagram: ‘2026, it’s still the same thing, nothing changes. These people are never punished.

‘You create big campaigns against racism, but nobody actually does anything.’

Mejbri had earlier also shared abusive messages he had received and wrote on his Instagram story: ‘It’s 2026 and there are still people like that. Educate yourself and your kids, please.’

Chelsea said the abuse ‘is completely unacceptable and runs counter to the values of the game and everything we stand for as a club,’ and that ‘there is no room for racism’.

Bunrley’s Hannibal Mejbri was also racially abused following Burnley’s 1-1 draw against Chelsea (Picture: Getty)

A club statement added: ‘We stand unequivocally with Wes. He has our full support, as do all our players who are too often forced to endure this hatred simply for doing their job.

‘We will work with the relevant authorities and platforms in identifying the perpetrators and take the strongest possible action.’

Burnley said: ‘There is no place for this in our society and we condemn it unreservedly.’

Football’s response to allegations of racism has been heavily scrutinised in recent days following the incident in Lisbon .

Benfica boss Jose Mourinho in his post-match comments accused Vinicius of provoking what happened while the Portuguese club claimed there was a defamation campaign against their player.

We stand alongside Wesley Fofana and Chelsea in condemning the vile racist abuse he has received on social media.Racism has no place in our game or anywhere in society and we will continue to do all we can to support players who are subjected to discriminatory abuse.Football… https://t.co/Ddie91qkjB — Premier League (@premierleague) February 21, 2026

The match on Tuesday was halted for 10 minutes early in the second half after Vinicius refused to return to the pitch after becoming suddenly and visibly upset with something apparently said to him by Prestianni, who covered his mouth with his shirt during the incident.

Saturday’s Premier League game ended level after Burnley’s Zian Flemming headed a stoppage-time equaliser to deny Chelsea, who dominated up until Fofana’s red card.