11 arrested over online racial abuse of English soccer players

British police arrested 11 people in connection with online racial abuse against U.K. soccer players after the team’s loss in the Euro 2020 championship, The Associated Press reported Thursday.

Those arrested reportedly ranged in age from 18 to 63 and were later released with orders to return to court.

English soccer players Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were hit with floods of racial abuse after the loss against Italy on July 11. Multiple accounts targeted the three Black players. Shortly after, the U.K. banned soccer fans with a history of online racial harassment.

Many officials condemned the abuse. Prince William even said he was “sickened” by the bigotry toward the players, the AP noted.

The U.K. Football Policing Unit is investigating the online comments and has reportedly requested data from social media companies.

“There are people out there who believe they can hide behind a social media profile and get away with posting such abhorrent comments. They need to think again,” said Cheshire Chief Constable Mark Roberts, who spearheads soccer policing for the National Police Chiefs’ Council, according to the AP. 

In total, 207 criminal social media posts were identified in the U.K., 123 of which belong to people outside the country, according to the news service. Those accounts were reportedly shared with the account holders’ home countries. The unit is still waiting to receive more information about the remaining 50 account holders, the AP noted.