Man gets suspended sentence for racist abuse of Jess Carter

A 60-year-old man from Great Harwood, Lancashire, received a suspended prison sentence on Wednesday for sending racist and misogynistic messages to England defender Jess Carter during the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 tournament in Switzerland.

Nigel Dewale was sentenced at Blackburn Magistrates Court to six weeks in custody, suspended for 12 months, after pleading guilty in January to sending a grossly offensive message via a public communications network and possessing an offensive weapon, an extendable baton, in a private place. He also received a four-year football banning order, a three-month curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., 10 days of rehabilitation activities, a victim surcharge of 154 pounds, and prosecution costs of 113.58 pounds.

The UK Football Policing Unit launched an investigation in July 2025 following reports of hateful social media posts targeting Carter, who was a key player for the England Lionesses as they defended their European title with a victory over Spain in the final. Officers traced two messages posted from Dewale's TikTok account under the username "Bogeyman" to his home address. The posts, sent between June 19 and 23 after England's matches against France and...