Karamoko Dembele claims he was racially abused while in Scotland camp and outlines Celtic struggle

Capped at under-17 level, Dembele - now 23 - claimed in an interview with The Athletic that a team-mate “was racist to me” during one of the Scotland camps. The Scottish Football Association said they were “saddened” to learn of what the former Celtic academy player, who is now at Queens Park Rangers in the English Championship, experienced.

Dembele, who went on to represent England Under-18s, was widely regarded as one of Scotland’s brightest prospects and made his first-team debut for Celtic in 2019. He moved on to French side Brest in 2022 and also played for Blackpool, where his performances earned him a permanent move to QPR.

“When I went to one of the Scotland camps, a team-mate was racist to me,” Dembele told The Athletic. “He used a racial reference. He would always target me. I was so young — two years younger — I couldn’t defend myself physically but it was bullying, for sure.

“I don’t even want to say what he said. I didn’t report it. I felt disgusted. When you’re racially abused, coming out and saying that someone said this feels quite embarrassing.”

The SFA issued a response to The Athletic, which read: “We are saddened to learn of Karamoko’s experience while on international duty. The Scottish FA has made great strides in embedding a culture of equality and inclusion within all national teams. We have reached out to Karamoko to offer support but also to reaffirm our commitment to ensure everyone feels welcome and that measures are in place to prevent discrimination, whether real or perceived, within our camps.

“As part of Show Racism the Red Card’s Month of Action, we are launching a subsidised education programme to our member clubs designed to educate players, youth players, club staff and leaders. We will continue to support players across our squads and our member clubs, and work to eradicate all forms of discrimination in our national game.”

Dembele also claimed that he was not made completely welcome by the Celtic first team when he was assimilated under Neil Lennon. “I was being targeted by some,” he said. “In a tackle, some would leave a bit more on it. It might have been to toughen me up but if I reacted, then I had a bad attitude. So I can’t react, but if I play football a certain way, I was having myself (being cocky), and probably going to get injured. I couldn’t win.

“Some people thought I should be more humble but I’m not taking s*** just because I’m up here (at first-team level at that age). ‘It’s not my fault I’m up here’. I didn’t conform to that.

“I don’t like using the race thing, but because I was black and confident, maybe they did think I was having myself. But I was just having myself at what I was good at. If I was myself, I was probably going to get injured. I was thinking, ‘I can’t win here’.

“The foreign players (at the club) didn’t think anything of how I was. They all have their own personality and character. It was always more the Scottish players. I always think if I had been somewhere else I would have been treated and cared for a lot more.”

Dembele is currently sidelined by a knee injury that he picked up last season while playing for QPR.

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