'Balotelli booking unacceptable and wrong' say Kick It Out

The charity said it was "shocked" to see the booking, calling it "unacceptable and wrong". 

Balotelli, who has been the victim of racist abuse from fans on multiple occasions, felt that he was once again being racially discriminated on Saturday. He reacted furiously and complained to referee Nicolas Rainville that a handful of Dijon fans were being discriminatory towards him, pointing his finger. However, he ended up receiving a booking for his reaction, to the disbelief of many, including Kick It Out. 

“Kick It Out was shocked to see Mario Balotelli booked for bringing to the attention of the referee alleged racist chanting directed towards him by Dijon supporters", began the public statement from the charity.  

“It is unacceptable and wrong to see that once again, a match official has failed to apply the UEFA protocol – in place for a number of years – which requires action to be taken to stop the game to deal with the offending abuse."

“Although Kick It Out’s remit is within English football, the organisation has contacted anti-discrimination network Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) to see what actions they will be taking in raising this with Ligue 1 officials."

They concluded by calling for a swift reaction from the French authorities, stating: “The organisation expects a strong response from the French football authorities in condemning both the alleged racist chanting from Dijon supporters and the failure of the referee to follow protocol to halt the behaviour, as well as the decision to compound Balotelli’s experience as a victim by booking him for merely asking the match official to do his job.”