Marc Guehi among six players who did not take the knee during No Room For Racism round
Marc Guehi chose to clap rather than take the knee as Premier League clubs resumed the gesture this weekend for the first time this season as part of October's No Room for Racism campaign. Six players across five clubs opted to remain standing during the pre-match gesture.
Players in the Premier League began taking the knee in 2020 following the death of George Floyd and the subsequent Black Lives Matter protests, and the practice was limited to selected matches after an agreement by club captains before the 2022-23 campaign. This season, captains agreed that the gesture would be used during October's No Room For Racism fixtures, which coincide with Black History Month in the UK.
Speaking before Manchester City's Champions League game on Tuesday, Guehi was asked whether it had lost its impact. "I haven't been taking the knee for a while now. I always clap, just because of what that actually signifies," said the England international. "I don't think it's necessarily a football issue, I think it's a wider societal issue and football is just that beacon of hope to try and get the message out. "The message is still there, which is great. More can always be done. I think we should see how we can move the campaign along."
The Premier League says taking the knee is a decision led by the players and that it is supportive of whatever stance they choose to take. The other five players who did not take the knee this weekend have not publicly commented; Leeds manager Daniel Farke set out Dominic Calvert-Lewin's position. "Dom is more or less like, 'no, I don't go down. I show my respect by standing up'. Every individual is different and shows respect for this campaign in a different way," said Farke. "It's definitely a good campaign and a good topic that football and sports, in general, support situations like this because a dressing room is a perfect example of how we should all live together." Calvert-Lewin remained standing while other players took the knee before Sunday's match between Leeds United and Manchester United.
Former Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha was the first Premier League player to stop taking the knee in 2021 and explained his reasoning at the time. "I feel kneeling has just become a part of the pre-match routine and at the moment it doesn't matter whether we kneel or stand, some of us still continue to receive abuse," he said.
Kick It Out told BBC Sport that taking the knee "still has value in raising awareness of the structural inequalities that exist in football and society." "We can also understand the reasons players might become frustrated with the pace of change," they added. Between 2021-22 and 2025-26, reports of both discrimination and racism received by the charity more than doubled and reached record levels last season. High-profile incidents this year included racist online abuse of England defender Jess Carter during last summer's Women's Euros, which preceded the Lionesses stopping taking the knee; England manager Sarina Wiegman said at the time: "Taking the knee, that's not enough. We have done that for a while. The impact is not good enough, it's not as big as we think." In February, Burnley midfielder Hannibal Mejbri, Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana, Wolves striker Tolu Arokodare and Sunderland winger Romaine Mundle were all subjected to racist abuse on social media over a single weekend, and a BBC Sport investigation identified 22,389 potentially abusive messages across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X over a separate weekend. A 2025 YouGov poll found a majority of ethnic minority football fans in Britain still considered taking the knee important in tackling racism, although most football fans overall in England did not.
The No Room For Racism campaign includes initiatives beyond the pre-match gesture. "We are using the reach of our players to send an important message: we are united in the fight against racism," said Premier League chief executive Richard Masters. Players have helped develop educational resources about diversity that are available to more than 19,000 primary schools across England and Wales. "I think it's important for young people to see role models who look like them, to see that they can achieve anything. It doesn't matter who you are, what you do or how you look," said Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk. "It means a lot to me to represent my community on and off the pitch."
The Premier League has announced: "Players will be taking the knee before kick-off during the next two match rounds to show unity against all forms of discrimination."
