Sir Jim Ratcliffe 'reminded of responsibilities' by Football Association after anti-immigration rant

Per Sky News, the FA has spoken to Ratcliffe and he has been reminded of his responsibilities as a participant in English football, after a rant to the same broadcaster saw him claim that the "UK has been colonised by immigrants". 

His comments were: "You can't have an economy with nine million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants coming in," he said. "I mean, the UK has been colonised. It's costing too much money. The UK has been colonised by immigrants, really, hasn't it? I mean, the population of the UK was 58 million in 2020, now it's 70 million. That's 12 million people."

The comments sparked an intense backlash, including a message of condemnation from Kick It Out, the anti-racism charity. However, the FA have only reminded Ratcliffe that he should bear in mind his footballing responsibilities, instead of punishing either the billionaire or the club. 

A wave of revulsion followed Ratcliffe's comments and Prime Minister Keir Starmer called on him to apologise, writing on X: "Britain is a proud, tolerant and diverse country.

"Jim Ratcliffe should apologise."

Rachael Reeves, the chancellor, called the comments "disgusting". 

Ratcliffe did eventually apologise, somewhat, issuing a statement which read:  "I am sorry that my choice of language has offended some people in the UK and Europe and caused concern."

United interim boss Michael Carrick was asked about Ratcliffe's comments in his latest press conference on Friday.

He said:  "Sir Jim has made a statement and then the club has made a statement. It is not my place to add to that. What I can say is I have been at this club many years and we make a huge impact globally, in whatever way, and we are responsible for that. As a player, member of staff, supporter, I think we are really proud of that environment and the culture we have at the club. Equality and diversity and respect for each other is what we try and carry through every day. I have travelled the world and I know what this club means to an awful lot of people. We are fully aware of the responsibility and we try to carry that out every single day."

Asked if his comments could have an effect on the squad, Carrick was unconcerned, adding: "We have a really strong group. The players, the staff, inside and out of the club. We’re always talking to each other. The boys have been in really good spirits. We have taken a deep breath, come back and [are] focusing on what is next. We are here to help each other. Part of being at this club [is that] we understand what it is like globally. I can only speak from my personal experience, all backgrounds and different backgrounds I am really proud of."

United are next in action on Monday evening, when they visit Everton. Carrick's side are fourth in the Premier League table ahead of his reunion with old manager David Moyes. 

He is excited to lock horns with the former United boss, adding: "David’s teams are hard to play against. He is such a good manager – the experience he has got, he knows what it takes to have success in this league. It is a new challenge for us and one we are looking forward to. We have had a lot of time to look forward to it. It is going to take a lot. I know it is a new stadium but historically it has always been tough going to Everton. The atmosphere their supporters create, it is always one of the toughest ones I have played in, so we are aware of that. We are trying to be our best. We have things to improve on but we have a good base and foundation moving forward. A good spirit and we will draw on pretty much all of that on Monday night."