England captain Harry Kane has said that the English national team is ready to walk off the pitch if there are any instances of racism towards his players during the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Serbia in Belgrade.
The Rajko Mitic Stadium will be at a reduced capacity after Serbia was punished by UEFA for racist behaviour by its fans in June against Andorra. A similar situation occurred in 2019 in Sofia, when England faced Bulgaria and the match was stopped twice due to racist abuse.
Speaking to the media, Kane said: "Yes, we had a similar situation in Bulgaria. UEFA has its own protocols and we know the steps that need to be followed. We are clear about what we want to do. We hope it doesn't happen, but if it does, we are ready to make the decision."
England coach Thomas Tuchel also confirmed that the matter had been discussed with the FA: "I haven't spoken directly to the players, but the FA have spoken to us about it. We believe in the best and hope that the match will be played at a high sporting level, celebrating football for what it is."
England aims to get a second consecutive victory, after the success against Andorra, but facing Serbia in a hot environment is expected to be one of the most delicate challenges of the group.