Enzo Fernandez has issued a public apology after coming under widespread condemnation for singing a chant that contained racist and discriminatory slurs during Argentina's Copa America celebrations.
The Chelsea midfielder went live on Instagram following his nation's 1-0 win over Colombia in the final and was caught singing the controversial chant which makes bigoted remarks about the French national team.
The song, which references how several Les Bleus members are of African heritage, contains the lyrics: "They play for France, but their parents are from Angola. Their mother is from Cameroon, while their father is from Nigeria. But their passport says French."
Chelsea teammate Wesley Fofana, a French international whose father is Ivorian, took to X (formerly Twitter) to condemn the former Benfica ace, writing: "Football in 2024: uninhibited racism."
Fernandez took to Instagram shortly afterward to issue an apology, writing: "I want to apologize sincerely for a video posted on my Instagram channel during the national team celebrations.
"The song includes highly offensive language and there is absolutely no excuse for these words.
"I stand against discrimination in all forms and apologize for getting caught up in the euphoria of our Copa America celebrations.
"That video, that moment, those words, do not reflect my beliefs or my character. I am truly sorry."
According to the Telegraph, the player not only apologized publicly but also in a private message to the Chelsea squad. It remains unclear whether that is enough to make amends with Wesley Fofana, Christopher Nkunku, Malo Gusto, and Axel Disasi, Chelsea's core of French players who all unfollowed the Argentine on social media.
The Blues issued their own statement, acknowledging their player's apology while announcing an investigation into the matter. The Telegraph writes that Chelsea had to make sure the video was real due to the rise of AI-generated content, reaching out to the midfielder first for clarification.
"We acknowledge and appreciate our player's public apology and will use this as an opportunity to educate," the club wrote on their official website.
"The Club has instigated an internal disciplinary procedure."
The French Football Federation has promised to take legal action as this chant, which stems from France's 2022 FIFA World Cup final showdown with Argentina, takes aim at their national team players. FIFA also announced that they will be opening a probe into this matter.
