Against the backdrop of John Terry's disciplinary hearing with The Football Association for the alleged racial abuse of Anton Ferdinand, much debate has emanated regarding the wider issues of racism within the sport.
Whilst Terry was found guilty of using abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour towards Queens Park
Rangers' Anton Ferdinand, which included a reference to colour and/or race, many have suggested that racism is a widespread problem, with the inclination that it is an incessant disease manifesting itself within the sport.
In the past 12 months there have been a number of issues that have brought this argument to the forefront of people's minds.
Luis Suarez, the Liverpool striker, was found guilty of racially abusing Patrice Evra, the Manchester United defender, in a league game at Anfield last season -a week before John Terry, the Chelsea captain, was alleged to have racially abused Anton Ferdinand, the Queens Park Rangers defender.
These two cases alone brought such unwanted attention to a sport that has, we are lead to believe, worked tirelessly to rid itself of this type of incident.
The outlook is very different to how it once was. Gone are the days that, in this country at least, black players are be subjected to the abuse that is so evident in countries such as Ukraine, Russia and Spain.
But how far have we actually come?
As children, we are told by our elders to 'speak up' if we are bullied, in the knowledge that those responsible will be dealt with accordingly. But, if the aforementioned cases are anything to go by, why on earth would you put yourself through what Evra and Ferdinand have had to endure?
For having the temerity to make an official complaint of racist abuse against Suarez, Evra finds himself on the receiving end of insults and boos every time he faces Liverpool. Similarly, Ferdinand is roundly booed by Chelsea fans and has received bullets in the post. This abuse has extended to his brother Rio, the Manchester United defender, and other family members who have received death threats.
There is a lot to love about football but there is an awful lot to loathe. It is a sport that is riddled with such hypocrisy and run by organisations that cause offence to the word organisation.
Remind yourself briefly of the uproar in this country when, despite receiving an almost unbeatable 'technical bid' to host the FIFA World Cup in 2018, the tournament was awarded to Russia with England finishing fourth in the voting process.
Remember the finger pointing? Remember the accusations? Remember The FA getting on their soap box and highlighting the flaws within FIFA and citing Russia's record of racial discrimination?
Cast your mind back to whenever England players have been subjected to racial abuse while away on international duty playing in Spain, Poland, Ukraine... the list goes on. Remember the reaction of The FA? Remember how they insisted that FIFA and UEFA take this issue seriously? Remember how we scoffed at the paltry fines and sanctions that were given?
Now think how hypocritical this all sounds when, yesterday, The FA finds John Terry guilty of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand and serves him with a four match ban and a fine of £220,000.
The stage was set for The FA to take the lead and show FIFA, UEFA and the world just how intolerant they are of such discrimination, but they failed horrendously.
Regardless of the differences in the Suarez case, where he was banned for eight games and fined £40,000, this punishment will not act as a deterrent.
It will not inspire those from grass-roots level upwards to speak up against racism. It will not make players, at any level, feel any more protected and it will certainly not make people believe they belong to an organisation that takes racism seriously.
By ignoring the wider ramifications of such a weak sentence, The FA have once again shown that, on the balance of probabilities, they are one of the most spineless governing bodies in the world.
As the news of John Terry's retirement from international football filtered through last night, it was The Football Association that were the subject of fierce criticism.
Whilst there can be no doubt that The FA have approached Terry's impending disciplinary with a huge amount of reluctance, the timing of his retirement shows a distinct level of arrogance.
Every player has the right to retire, this is not for discussion, but when a player decides to call time on his international career a day before an FA disciplinary hearing, citing the situation as "untenable", it shows the making of the man.
Today's FA disciplinary hearing is into the "alleged reference to the ethnic origin and/or colour and/or race of Anton Ferdinand, the Queens Park Rangers defender. It is not, as many have wrongly suggested, a hearing into whether Terry racially abused Ferdinand.
It is ludicrous that this has taken so long to be heard by an FA disciplinary panel. Notwithstanding the fact this was the subject of a court case, The FA have had months to deal with this issue since Terry was cleared of racially abusing Ferdinand at Westminster Magistrates' Court in July.
In his statement, the Chelsea captain, said: "Pursuing charges [when] I have already been cleared in a court... has made my
position untenable. Representing and captaining my country is what I dreamed of as a boy and it has
been a truly great honour. I have always given my all and it breaks my heart to
make this decision."
From the opening comment in his statement, Terry seemingly believes that he is beyond reproach for his actions. This is unforgivable and obscenely arrogant.
The FA have a duty to the sport and its reputation to run the rule over any incident(s) that they deem brings the game into disrepute. It is astounding that Terry, or whoever has advised him, has dressed this up as a witch-hunt.
What makes this statement even more deplorable is that an FA hearing into the events at Loftus Road last October was inevitable. So much so that, as soon as the Police became involved and it was the subject of a legal dispute, The FA said that any hearing would be conducted following the conclusion of the court case.
Regardless of the fact that Terry was cleared of racially abusing Ferdinand, his actions warrant an FA hearing - if only for a 'bringing the game into disrepute' charge. With the very public court case, in which the entire football fraternity had to endure, there can be little doubt that the image of the game was tarnished.
Whilst we shouldn't forget that Terry has been a colossal figure at times for England, he is also someone who epitomised the spirit England fans expect from their players. You don't win 78 international caps for being an average player. However, with the same token, we also shouldn't forget that he has been stripped of the England captaincy twice. This is not the record of a role model.
Terry's statement also suggests that because he has been cleared in court then that should be it and that he should not be answerable to an FA hearing. You may wonder how that kind of decision would go down on Merseyside, with Liverpool losing their striker, Luis Suarez, for eight games last season after being found guilty of racially abusing Patrice Evra, the Manchester United defender.
Although there are slight differences in the two cases, The FA would be pilloried should they show anything but a consistent approach to these issues.
However, in delaying the date for Terry's hearing, The FA have shown a complete lack of authority and have forced Roy Hodgson, the England manager, into inheriting a problem that should have been put to bed months ago.
Whilst many will respect Terry's decision to retire and his reasons for doing so, it is difficult to see beyond the comments of a man that appears so reluctant to face the consequences of the actions that brought such shame on both him and his sport.
As summer ends, and the memory fades like sunburn, there are those already predicting gloom. They are the same people, who predicted washout, cock-up, grid lock and overkill, and they will be just as wrong. It was the best summer ever, precisely because we feared the worst.
The above was a quote from Ben Macintyre which was featured in The Sunday Times. It perfectly encapsulates the summer of sport that the nation has just witnessed and why we, as a nation, should be justly proud to be British.
This has been the beauty of hosting the Olympics and Paralympics. We have seen the best of the country and a unified sense of patriotism which is so often reluctantly shown for fear of causing offence.
It has "opened our minds to what people can do and to what can be achieved by sheer talent and determination", as Lord Coe so exquisitely put it. We have seen sport and disability in a way we could not have imagined.
It has made the governing bodies of national sports, most notably The Football Association, pledge to learn from the Olympics and sustain the Olympic spirit. This, though, is where Macintyre's prediction of gloom and being wrong feels slightly out of touch.
Whilst parallels can be drawn between football and the Olympics on the simple basis that they are both sports and forms of entertainment, there is a fundamental flaw affecting this sustained mantra of Olympic fever.
That fundamental flaw is, quite simply, The FA.
This weekend will serve as a reminder to all of the ineptitude of an organisation that has been treading on egg shells for far too long.
On Saturday afternoon, Queens Park Rangers welcome Chelsea to Loftus Road in the Premier League. It will become yet another fixture between the two sides in which a handshake, or not, will take prominence over the actual result in what is fast becoming a Punch and Judy type sideshow between the sides.
For the minority unfamiliar with previous events, John Terry the Chelsea and former England captain, was accused of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, the QPR defender, during a league meeting between the two teams almost 12 months ago.
In July of this year, after a very public court case in which details published only helped tarnish the sport, Terry was cleared of racism against Ferdinand. Less than two weeks later, having relinquished any form of disciplinary action until the legal dispute had run its course, The FA charged Terry with using abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour towards Ferdinand. Terry predictably denied the charge and requested a private hearing.
With Terry and Ferdinand both reportedly winning their races to be fit for the match, one can't help but think that The FA are crossing their fingers in the hope an injury to one, or both, will spare their blushes.
It is fast approaching a year since that incident took place and, in that time, the sport has never been allowed to move on from this sorry saga yet The FA have appeared alarmingly apprehensive in trying to bring this matter to a justified conclusion.
Their laissez-faire approach to issues that are both damaging and distracting to the sport make their gestures to 'learn from the Olympics' seem extremely empty.
So while our Olympians and Paralympians, our 'games-makers' and armed forces and the Great British public have helped make London 2012 "the best Olympic Games ever" and a platform for other sports to build upon, an afternoon at Loftus Road will highlight the stark reality of how far football has to go to reach the standards set.
