Jess Carter: Man, 59, arrested over alleged online abuse of Lionesses star during Women's European Championships

Lancashire Police confirmed that a 59-year-old man was arrested in Great Harwood on Thursday, August 28 on suspicion of malicious communications in relation to some of the messages received by the footballer. The force added that he had since been released under investigation while enquiries continue.

Police Constable Dan Fish from Lancashire Police said: “Lancashire Police does not tolerate hate of any form, either in person or online. I hope this arrest sends out a clear message that Lancashire Police will leave no stone unturned in identifying those who engage in such unacceptable behaviour – no matter how long it takes.”

Cheshire Constabulary Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chief Council (NPCC) lead for football policing, added: “The messages directed towards Jess Carter were appalling and I would like to commend her for standing up to this abuse and assisting with our investigation. Nobody should be subjected to such disgusting abuse, and I expect that today’s arrest will be the first of many over the coming months.

“We want to make it clear that racist abuse of this nature will not be tolerated. Everyone is responsible for what they do and say, and we want to ensure offenders cannot hide behind a social media profile to post vile comments.”

Carter, who appeared for England during their winning campaign at the Women’s Euros in Switzerland earlier this summer, spoke out about the abuse she received during the tournament. Just days before the semi-final against Italy, Carter said in a post on Instagram: “From the start of the tournament I have experienced a lot of racial abuse.

“Whilst I feel every fan is entitled to their opinion on performance and result, I don’t agree or think it’s ok to target someone’s appearance or race. As a result of this, I will be taking a step back from social media and leaving it to the team to deal with.

“As ever I am grateful for all of the support from genuine fans but I am taking this measure to protect myself in a bid to keep my focus on helping the team any way I can.”

Carter added: “Hopefully speaking out will make the people writing this abuse think twice so that others won’t have to deal with it. We have made some historic changes with this Lionesses squad that I am so proud to be a part of and my hope is that by speaking out about this it will make another positive change for all.”

Her teammates and fans jumped to Carter’s defence and showed support for the star. Manager Sarina Weigmann said: "It's really sad we have to be occupied by this. It's ridiculous and disgusting. It goes beyond football so we have to pay attention to that and support Jess. Of course she is not the only one to get abuse and [experience] racism and that is why she has addressed it. She is fully supported by us, the team and by myself.

"We have conversations. It's a hard situation, but Jess is a very strong person, she wants to move on too. But she also felt she had to address this, she couldn't just let it go, so she did - we did.”