Sounding the whistle on racism cut short my career - Luther Burrell

Important note: This piece includes details of discriminatory comments and behaviour

FormerEngland player Luther Burrell claims that going public to reveal racial discrimination in rugby union brought his career to an early end.

In a 2022 interview, Burrell characterized racism as being "rife" in the game, showing Whatsapp messages and remembering training ground "jokes" he had been exposed to while representing Newcastle.

Then 34 and without a team, Burrell's only professional rugby since has been a handful of games with invitational side the Barbarians.

"I've have definitely had to retire because of what happened," he told media outlets.

"I wanted to continue playing, of course I did. I pursued that, and it fell through when news came out that there were investigations underway.

"That was challenging - I had to simply accept the outcome and accept that this entire situation is a lot more important than me."

A rugby governing body report in April 2023 found Burrell's allegations were true "on the balance of probability", but stated it could not gather enough proof to definitively say they occurred at Newcastle.

Burrell revealed to journalists he also encountered discrimination within the England set-up, during a Test career that saw him earn 15 caps after his first game in 2014.

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

"Some discrimination and some just outdated thinking that's really unacceptable."

Racism had become normalised in dressing rooms, in Burrell's experience.

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

"Over a extended period you just begin to think that it's the standard and that is fine and that it's not harmful, but that's nonsense."

Burrell explains he was finally motivated to go public after a team-mate at Newcastle called him as a "enslaved person" and told him to put sunscreen on his arms and legs "where chains would be placed."

The rugby authority said Burrell's revelations had led to "increased scrutiny at the culture within the elite game and to the introduction of an strategy for the professional game."

"The organization has given considerable attention on diversity and inclusion in the sport and a substantial amount of work undertaken both before and after Luther Burrell came forward and shared his experiences of racism and classism," it added.

"The organization are continuing work with teams and stakeholders in the elite level to work for a culture of acceptance but acknowledge this requires patience and is an ongoing process."

All Premiership and women's rugby club now has face-to-face training on creating welcoming cultures, with its success tracked via individual reports and feedback.

All England players, including age-grade squads, are educated in being "active bystanders" to intervene and defend others from harmful behaviour.

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

"I know it has had this effect on you and ended 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 shortly after the production of the film, and his sister passed away recently.

Burrell, who grew up on a social housing in Huddersfield, continues his work to make the sport more accessible.

His 12 Foundation works to reach children in disadvantaged communities and help them thrive on and off the pitch with complimentary sports coaching, guidance and nutrition education.

"My personal motivations are genuine, I want to see the evolution of the game and if nobody else is willing to share their story then I'll continue to fight that cause because I'm not just doing this for my own benefit," he said.

"We have an responsibility to make the game as great as it can be and the more I talk about it hopefully the more comfortable fellow players will become about discussing their own experiences as well.

"I need to take the bull by the opportunity and continue bearing this banner and continue carrying this weight and do what I can to develop possibilities and make the game more attractive and more welcoming.

"There are a lot of disadvantaged young people and a lot of poverty and I sincerely believe that the sport has the potential to change their futures, just as it transformed things for me."