Blowing the alarm on racism cut short my career - Luther Burrell

Warning: This piece includes descriptions of racially offensive comments and conduct

Ex-England player Luther Burrell claims that speaking out to expose racial discrimination in rugby union brought his career to an premature end.

In a June 2022, Burrell described racism as being "widespread" in the game, displaying digital communications and remembering training ground "comments" he had been subject to while playing for Newcastle.

At that time 34 and without a team, Burrell's only elite playing since has been a handful of games with invitational side the Barbarians.

"I have definitely had to end my career because of what occurred," he told reporters.

"I really wanted to carry on playing, naturally I did. I pursued that, and it fell through when word came out that there were investigations underway.

"This situation was challenging - I had to simply come to terms with the fate and understand that this entire process is a lot bigger than me."

A sports organization report in 2023 found Burrell's allegations were accurate "on the balance of probability", but stated it could not gather sufficient proof to definitively say they happened at Newcastle.

Burrell told media he also encountered discrimination within the England team environment, during a Test career that saw him win 15 appearances after his first game in 2014.

"I have had several traumatic experiences within the national team," he said.

"Some discrimination and some just old-school mentality that's really inappropriate."

Racism had become normalised in team environments, in Burrell's view.

"This is something that has been disguised as humour and that's been the issue that I've myself experienced and seen," said Burrell, who is of Jamaican descent.

"Over a period of time you just learn to believe that it's the standard and that is fine and that it's not malicious, but that's incorrect."

Burrell says he was eventually spurred to speak out after a fellow player at Newcastle called him as a "slave" and told him to put sun cream on his wrists and ankles "where chains would be placed."

The rugby authority said Burrell's disclosures had led to "increased scrutiny at the culture within the elite game and to the implementation of an action plan for the professional game."

"We has given considerable focus on inclusion and inclusion in rugby union and a substantial amount of work completed both prior and since Luther Burrell came forward and revealed his encounters of racism and class discrimination," it continued.

"We are continuing work with clubs and stakeholders in the elite level to strive for a culture of inclusivity but recognize this requires patience and is an ongoing process."

All Premiership and PWR club now has face-to-face education on creating inclusive cultures, with its success tracked via individual reports and surveys.

All England athletes, including youth squads, are educated in being "active bystanders" to step in and protect others from damaging conduct.

"You should be so pleased of what you have accomplished," Burrell's mother Joyce told him as part of the film about his experiences.

"I know it has had this impact on you and finished your playing days, but in our eyes, you have done so much. We are so impressed of you and to have you as a family member."

Burrell's father Geoff passed away soon after the filming of the documentary, and his sibling passed away recently.

Burrell, who was raised on a council estate in his hometown, maintains his work to make the game more accessible.

His 12 Foundation aims to connect with young people in disadvantaged communities and support them succeed on and off the field with free sports training, mentoring and nutrition education.

"My motivations are genuine, I want to see the progress of the sport and if nobody else is prepared to share their story then I'll persist to fight that cause because I'm not just doing this for myself," he explained.

"Everyone involved have an obligation to make the game as excellent as it can be and the more I talk about it hopefully the more confident fellow players will become about discussing their own experiences as well.

"I need to take the challenge by the opportunity and keep bearing this banner and continue supporting this responsibility and do what I can to develop opportunities and make the sport more appealing and more welcoming.

"There's a lot of underprivileged children and a lot of economic hardship and I honestly believe that rugby has the ability to transform their lives, just as it did for me."