The term "British Asian" generally refers to British citizens who can trace their origin to South Asia; however, it also refer to those of East Asian origin. The lack of British Asians in association football has received significant media attention, and has seen some clubs announce plans to explicitly target young British Asian players.
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In April 2001, Britains of South or East Asian heritage constituted over 55% of the non-white population, or at least 4.4% of the total population.[1] 2007 estimates for England only suggest at leat 7.0% of the English population as being of Asian origin, or 59% of non-whites.[2]
A Commission for Racial Equality survey in 2004 found only seven professional British Asian footballers playing in the UK; the same survey also found only ten British Asian players at Premier League academies.[3] By February 2008 the number of professionals had dropped to just five, and less than 1 in 100 of young players in Academies throughout the entire English football league system were Asian.[4] Current professionals, such as Adnan Ahmed, have publicly spoken out about the lack of fellow Asians in the sport.[5]
Roger Verdi, of Indian origin, was forced to change his name because of racism, and had to move to the United States in order to start a professional career.[6][7]
Zesh Rehman, of Pakistani origin, was the first British Asian to play in the Premiership.[8] Rehman later launched his own Foundation in May 2010, with the intention of helping young British Asians in football.[9]
Anwar Uddin, of Bangladeshi origin, was the first British Asian to captain a side in the top four divisions of English League football.[10] Uddin remains the only player of Bangladeshi origin to turn professional.[11]
Frank Soo, of Chinese heritage, played for the England wartime team and remains the only player of East Asian heritage to do so.[12]
In August 2007, trials were organised by the Pakistan Football Federation in Rotherham, South Yorkshire for British Pakistanis players to attend a training camp with the Pakistan national team.[13]
A number of British Asians have represented their secondary nations at international level; a full list can be found below.
There are a number of Asian-specific football teams. Teams such as London APSA and Sporting Bengal United became the first Asian clubs to play in the FA Cup in 2005.[3]
In October 2007, clubs in the Football League began out-reach programmes into Asian communities to attract new fans.[14]
In March 2009, Premier League club Chelsea announced plans to target young players from Asian communities.[15] Two players found on the trial later signed with Southend United and Leyton Orient, and in May 2010 Chelsea launched a second initiative, with the aim to find six young British Asian players.[16]
In December 1999, a Scottish Asian football fan publicly spoke out about the racism he had encountered at Rangers.[17]
Research compiled by the Premier League in March 2009 concluded that more British Asians were attending games than ever before.[18]
Jarnail Singh, who is of Indian descent, has been described as a "trailblazer" for Asian referees.[19]
The following is a list of British Asian footballers, organised by nation of origin.
| Name | Origin | Debut[20] | International details | Notes & references |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahmed, Shahed | Bangladesh | 2004 | [21] | |
| Uddin, Anwar | Bangladesh | 2002 | ||
| Chung, Sammy | Republic of China | 1951 | ||
| Soo, Frank | Republic of China | 1933 | Full caps for England | |
| Cheung Chi Doy | Hong Kong | 1960 | Full caps for China | |
| Cheung Chi Wai | Hong Kong | 1968 | ||
| Bains, Rikki | India | 2006 | ||
| Chopra, Michael | India | 2000 | Youth caps for England | |
| Dosanj, Aman | India | 1999 | Youth caps for England Women | First British Asian to represent England at any level[22][23] |
| Sansara, Netan | India | 2008 | Youth caps for England | |
| Singh, Harpal | India | 2001 | ||
| Verdi, Roger | India | 1972 | ||
| Verma, Aman | India | 2009 | ||
| Williams, Rhys | India | 2008 | Full caps for Australia | Born in Australia to a British father and an Indian mother |
| Jalal, Shwan | Iraq | 2000 | Full caps for England C | |
| Ahmed, Adnan | Pakistan | 2004 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Ashraf, Reis | Pakistan | 2009 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Bashir, Atif | Pakistan | 2004 | Full caps for Pakistan | Born in Germany to a British Asian father and a German Turkish mother |
| Docker, Adam | Pakistan | 2007 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Gondal, Usman | Pakistan | 2006 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Iqbal, Amjad | Pakistan | 2007 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Khan, Sabhir | Pakistan | 2009 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Rehman, Zesh | Pakistan | 2003 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Siddiqi, Kashif | Pakistan | 2005 | Full caps for Pakistan | |
| Etheridge, Neil | Philippines | 2008 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Hartmann, Darren | Philippines | 2005 | Youth caps for Philippines | |
| Hartmann, Mark | Philippines | 2011 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Hartmann, Matthew | Philippines | 2006 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Gier, Rob | Philippines | 2000 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Gould, Chad | Philippines | 2004 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Greatwich, Christopher | Philippines | 2004 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Greatwich, Phil | Philippines | 2006 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Greatwich, Simon | Philippines | 2008 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Younghusband, James | Philippines | 2006 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Younghusband, Phil | Philippines | 2006 | Full caps for Philippines | |
| Chunonsee, Mika | Thailand | 2007 | Youth caps for Wales | |
| Ramasut, Tom | Thailand | 1996 | Youth caps for Wales | |
| Mohames, Kaid | Yemen | 2003 |
The 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham deals with issues relating to British Asians in football.