Bulgaria vs England racism shame: Bulgarian Football Union president RESIGNS following prime minister’s intervention
The president of the Bulgarian Football Union has resigned in the wake of the disgusting racist abuse directed at England players on Monday night.
Borislav Mihaylov was urged to step down by Bulgaria's prime minister, Boyko Borissov, after the shocking scenes in Sofia and the BFU have announced he has now done so.
The government had threatened to pull all support of the national team until Mihaylov left his position.
That came after a night of shame in Bulgaria, which saw the Euro 2020 qualifier with England halted twice in the first half following monkey chants and Nazi salutes from a section of the home crowd.
Following consultation with UEFA officials, an announcement was made in the stadium warning fans that any further incidents could result in the match being abandoned, although England players and staff all agreed to play on and they answered the abuse in fine style and dignity with a thumping 6-0 win.
The Bulgarian fans were widely condemned for their actions, although head coach Krasimir Balakov insists he ‘did not hear’ any racist chanting.
Bulgaria's prime minister, however, was disgusted by the abuse and tweeted on Tuesday morning: "I strongly condemn the conduct of some of the fans at the stadium #BULENG.
"It is unacceptable that Bulgaria which is one of the most tolerant states in the world and where people of different ethnic and religious background peacefully live together should be associated with racism."
On Tuesday afternoon, the BFU confirmed Mihailov would step aside but suggested he could assist the governing body in a different capacity.
"Today, the president of the Bulgarian Football Union, Borislav Mihailov resigned," read the BFU's statement.
"His position is a consequence of the recent tensions, an environment that is detrimental to Bulgarian football and the Bulgarian Football Union.
"After many years spent in the post and with his many contacts at a high international level, Mr Mihailov expresses his firm readiness to continue helping in the development of Bulgarian football in every possible way."
Bulgaria is now facing sanctions from UEFA, who stressed on Tuesday there are 'doing everything it can' to eliminate racism from football.
Its president Aleksander Ceferin blamed a rise in nationalism across Europe for fuelling racism at matches and said the governing body was committed to eradicating the 'disease'.
"Believe me, UEFA is committed to doing everything it can to eliminate this disease from football," said Ceferin in a statement.
"We cannot afford to be content with this, we must always strive to strengthen our resolve.
"More broadly, the football family - everyone from administrators to players, coaches and fans - needs to work with governments and NGOs (non-governmental organisations) to wage war on the racists and to marginalise their abhorrent views to the fringes of society.
"Football associations themselves cannot solve this problem. Governments too need to do more in this area."
Meanwhile, Bulgarian sports journalist Metodi Shumanov was at the game on Monday night and he joined talkSPORT to share his reaction to the events, saying the national side ‘deserve to be punished’.
“I feel really sad,” he told the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast.
“Football aside, I think we failed as a society. It was such a shameful night, not only for Bulgarian football but for the whole country.
“This is a problem that should be tackled in the most serious of ways and I expect some severe punishments to come.
“I think we deserve to be punished, one way or another. If UEFA kick us out of the tournament it would be a historic precedent. I’m not sure of the textbook, but there should be consequences, for sure.”