FA criticised for clearing Malky Mackay

Former Cardiff manager Malky Mackay. Picture: PA

The FA announced yesterday that neither the Scot nor the club’s then head of recruitment Iain Moody would face disciplinary action over discriminatory text messages they exchanged during their time at the club.

The governing body said that the messages were sent “with a legitimate expectation of privacy’’.

But Kick it Out, which seeks to tackle racism and discrimination within football, has hit out at the move.

A statement said: “Kick It Out is of the view that The Football Association has damaged its own credibility and anti-discrimination policies by taking the decision not to charge former Cardiff City and Wigan Athletic manager Malky Mackay and Iain Moody, a former employee of Cardiff and Crystal Palace, for alleged racist, anti-Semitic, sexist and homophobic comments revealed by the Daily Mail in August 2014.”

The statement continued: “The FA has continued to maintain a distinction between public and private communications.

“These messages were exchanged via work phones and emails, and when they did eventually emerge into the public domain, it became clear to many people that such held and expressed views had brought the game into disrepute unless dealt with effectively and expeditiously.

“Once the messages were disclosed, there was a clear public interest in action being taken. Mackay and Moody admitted their involvement and this is clearly an abrogation of responsibility on the part of the FA. The review currently being undertaken by the FA of its unwritten policy on dealing with ‘private communication’ is lamentably