Former West Ham United striker Clyde Best suffered from racism when it was rife in English football during his playing career, but the 75-year-old does not agree with the contemporary protocols to tackle the issue.
“If I was racially abused as a player in this era, I wouldn’t want to walk off the field with my team-mates,” Best tells The Athletic at the Hyatt Hotel in Stratford. “Leaving the pitch doesn’t make sense to me. People pay a lot of money to watch games. FIFA needs to impose stronger fines and suspensions. Only then will we see real change. A lot of black players are frustrated that this keeps happening. We’re not going to tolerate it.”
It is a sensitive issue that resonates deeply with Best, who scored 58 goals in 218 appearances for West Ham between 1968-76. He is saddened that players are still subjected to racial abuse and surprised how little has changed since he retired from professional football back in 1984.
“I can’t believe that players are still impacted by racism,” he says. “It plays on my mind a lot when I see the players being abused. Some people’s only intention is to shout abuse and not even watch the games. My mindset was to silence them by scoring. I remember playing against Everton (in 1972) and their fans were booing me every time I touched the ball.
“It reached a point where I had enough and I scored just to make a point. You’ve got people in the stands that are going to be against you, but I couldn’t let that distract me from why I came to England in the first place. I had to think about the players who were going to come after me.”
Best left Bermuda in 1968 aged 17 to pursue a playing career at West Ham. He grew fond of the club, having watched West Ham trio Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters help England win the World Cup two years prior. Best signed for West Ham after impressing on trial. He made his debut against Arsenal on August 29, 1969 under manager Ron Greenwood. Best, who now lives in Bermuda, is back in familiar settings to promote his new documentary, Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story.
Best played for West Ham between 1968 and 1976 (Central Press/Getty Images)
Filming initially started in 2022 and features appearances from Ian Wright, the Arsenal legend, and Viv Anderson, the ex-Nottingham Forest defender and first black player to play for England’s senior team. But before Best reflects on his career at West Ham and how he hopes the club avoids relegation from the Premier League this season, he explains once more why there is no place for racism in football.
“The first time I ever experienced racism was in the build-up to a game at West Ham,” he says. “Someone sent an anonymous letter and threatened to throw acid in my face. I thought, ‘I’m playing for this club and somebody would actually do something like that’. Once the police and everybody got involved, we found out it wasn’t a person from this area, it was somebody from outside. But the guys protected me and made sure that I had cover when we came out through the tunnel.
“So if the acid was thrown, it would probably have gone on everyone because they wanted me to walk in the middle. That was all down to Bobby (Moore). He made sure we were able to conquer that situation. There was no place for it back then and that should still be the case now. FIFA and the clubs have to find a way to stamp this out because we’re still going through the same thing that happened in my day, which doesn’t make sense to me. People need to be held accountable. Football is for everybody but we’ve still got work to do.”
Best, who was awarded an MBE in 2006, was one of the first black superstars in English football. He attributes a lot of his achievements to Moore, Peters and Greenwood, who helped him settle in London. A significant milestone took place on April 1, 1972, when West Ham became the first top-flight club to field three black players in their starting XI in Best, Ade Coker and Clive Charles. Best believes that moment was hugely important.
“I left home at a young age and hopped on a plane not knowing what the end result would be,” Best says. “So many people say they wouldn’t have done what I did. The only sadness I have is that I can no longer play because I’m too old. If I could, I’d easily score 20 goals a season! It didn’t bother me being one of the few black players in the area and in the league. I wouldn’t have wanted to live anywhere else because the people treated me like one of their own.”
Best insists he would score 20 goals a season in the Premier League… were it not for his age (Jackson/Getty Images)
“At the time, I felt that my job was to try and make it better for players coming today. When I see the amount of players we have of colour playing, I understand and realise I had something to do with that. To be able to lay down a legacy at West Ham is mindboggling. When I played, the fans didn’t see someone trying to duck and dive. I went out there to try and entertain them.”
Best watches every West Ham match when time permits, and clearly still holds a great deal of affection for his former club.
“My family know never to bother me when West Ham are on TV,” Best says. “If West Ham’s playing, don’t even bother touching the television. But if we lose, then that’s my weekend ruined. I’m an emotional person, so if we stay up, you might see tears in my eyes!”
Following the club’s 2-0 loss to Aston Villa, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side remain in the relegation zone — one point adrift of 17th-placed Tottenham Hotspur. West Ham have upcoming league games against Wolverhampton Wanderers (h), Crystal Palace (a) and Everton. Best believes his former club are capable of retaining their Premier League status and puts that down to one thing.
“I think the first person you’ve got to give a lot of credit to is the head coach Nuno. He’s came in and inherited a shambles because we decided to get rid of most of our best players (last summer). If you take it back further, we let Declan Rice go (to Arsenal in 2023 for £105million), but you need to hold onto these players as long as you can.
“We can’t afford to lose players like that and not sign adequate replacements. That’s why we’re going through this tough moment. I hope we get out of it. Nuno’s brought in some good talent and has improved players like (Crysencio) Summerville. He’s got to take credit for that. If we stay up, hopefully we give him the tools that he needs to be able to take us where we need to be.”