Nearly 13,000 people have signed a petition urging Lambeth Council to commission a mural honouring local England star Jadon Sancho.
The petition was started last week by local fans Alex Richardson and Callum McCulloch, who live in Kennington where Sancho was raised, after the England men’s team reached their first major final for 55 years.
They hope the mural will be a demonstration of Lambeth’s support for the winger in the wake of racist abuse coming out of the Euros final last weekend.
McCulloch, a south Londoner and huge fan of Sancho’s new team, Manchester United, said: “Sancho really represents everything that is great about this new generation of footballers in this country: from courageously moving abroad in search of first team football, to giving back to his local area with a state-of-the-art pitch in Myatt’s Field Park, helping to nurture the talents of hundreds of aspiring south London footballers.
“A mural would demonstrate that Lambeth stands in solidarity with Jadon for the vile racist abuse he and other black England players have been subjected to.”
Sancho, along with Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka, received racist abuse online after failing to secure a goal in the final’s penalty shootout.
He has since spoken out, posting on Twitter: “Hate will never win. To all the young people who have received similar abuse, hold your heads up high and keep chasing the dream.”
When opening the new Lambeth Tigers pitch in 2019, Sancho said: “Growing up in Kennington has made me the man I am today.
“I owe a lot to south London for nurturing the way I play.”
The petition has had Lambeth residents as well as local councillors.
Sancho is also set to be awarded the Freedom of Southwark, the highest civic award a council can give.
Councillor Barrie Hargrove, Mayor of Southwark, said: “Watching Jadon play in the Euro tournament was incredible.
“I felt, like many residents, that he is a diamond in Southwark’s crown and we could not be more proud of him and what he achieved for this country.”
The petition can be found here.
Image credit: Вячеслав Евдокимов via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY-SA 3.0 license
