Jose Mourinho Discusses Rooney Rule, Racism in Football

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho claims there is no racism in English football, as he made it very clear he feels there is no need for the Football Association to adopt a variant of the Rooney Rule, designed to give ethnic minority managers more chances at landing a permanent gig.

As reported by The Guardian, Mourinho was asked about the potential implementation of a quota similar to the Rooney Rule, which was adopted by the NFL and requires team owners to make sure a certain percentage of candidates interviewing for a job are members of ethnic minorities, and he answered negatively:

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There is no racism in football. If you are good, you are good. If you are good, you get the job.

If you are good, you prove that you deserve the job. Football is not stupid to close the doors to top people.

If you are top, you are top.

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Mourinho's opinion stands in stark contrast to those of anti-racism groups like Kick It Out, who believe the Football Association is doing too little to ensure minority groups are given enough chances at becoming a coach or manager in the current football climate.

At this moment, there are just two managers of an ethnic minority in charge of any of the 92 clubs in England's top four divisions: Huddersfield's Chris Powell and Carlisle's Keith Curle.

Kick It Out recently released a statement, emphasising their disappointment with a lack of progression since a 2012 summit meeting at 10 Downing Street, per The Guardian:

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Kick It Out was invited to 10 Downing Street by the Prime Minister for an anti-discrimination summit with football’s leaders and a number of former players in February 2012.

A clear pledge was made at this meeting to tackle the lack of diversity when it comes to positions off-the-field. What steps have we seen taken by those in power to address this under-representation following this?

The implementation of the Rooney Rule has been talked about at different times since then in relation to management and coaching jobs, and there does not appear to be any serious action or other initiative which may lead to an equitable outcome.

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The Women's Engineering Society appears intrigued by the debate, as they found similarities with their cause:

Opinion on the Rooney Rule and its place in English football appears divided. While some argue the top candidates will always find their way to the right job, others will point to the statistics and argue that as of right now, ethnic minorities are severely under-represented, for other reasons than their capabilities.

Bleacher Report's Mike Freeman wrote an article commemorating the 10-year anniversary of the implementation of the rule in the NFL last year, and he could only conclude it appeared to work:

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It's been called racist and an antidote to racism. It is neither. 

[...]It has worked. Since the Rooney Rule was implemented in 2003, 17 teams have had either an African-American or Latino head coach or general manager. Three teams—the Chiefs, Colts and Raiders—have had more than one head coach of color. This progress probably would not have happened without the forcible nudge of the rule, because in the 80 years of the NFL's existence before it, just seven head coaches of color were hired.

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Perhaps the biggest argument in favour of the rule is the one Mourinho made on Friday—if the best candidates do get the job they deserve in English football, there is no reason to fear the rule at all.

The rule wouldn't require a team president to pass over a candidate because he's not a member of an ethnic minority—all it does is promise an interview. Then again, none of this should be an issue if English football indeed has no problem with racism, as Mourinho believes.

The debate will undoubtedly rage on, with plenty of opinions on both sides of the argument. Mourinho is one of the first top managers in the world to speak his mind on the subject, and his answer should inspire aspiring managers to work even harder and prove that they do indeed deserve a job in the dugout.

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