Fourteen months after Antoine Semenyo reported being racially abused while taking a throw-in at Anfield, the Manchester City forward is still waiting for the case to be decided. The trial of the Liverpool supporter accused of abusing him was halted on Wednesday after the defendant suffered a seizure and was taken to hospital by ambulance.
Mark Mogan, 47, denies racially aggravated behaviour. He is accused of shouting a racial slur at Semenyo roughly half an hour into the opening Premier League match of last season, on 15 August 2025, as the Ghana international — then a Bournemouth player — went to take a throw-in in front of the Main Stand.
What the court heard
Prosecutor Simon Jones told Liverpool Magistrates' Court, as reported by PA, that Semenyo briefly froze when the abuse was shouted directly at him, and that he was clearly hurt and upset by what he had heard. Semenyo said nothing back, took the throw-in, and reported the incident to referee Anthony Taylor the next time the ball went out of play. Mogan was removed from the stadium at half-time, the court was told.
Two short video clips of the incident were played to the court, and prosecutors said witnesses saw chewing gum thrown from the crowd strike Semenyo on the shorts. A statement from Neil Sherratt, a fellow supporter who sits next to Mogan in the disabled section of the Main Stand, described Mogan leaving his bay and approaching the pitch as Semenyo came to take the throw. Another fan, Nicholas Collins, described Mogan as defiant afterwards.
Mogan was interviewed by police the following day. His account, as summarised by the prosecution, was that he had shouted at Semenyo to hurry up, that Semenyo had insulted him, and that he threw chewing gum onto the floor rather than at the player. Prosecutors told the court that account was a lie. Mogan, who has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair, had an intermediary with him in court.
The day the trial stopped
Semenyo, now 26 and a Manchester City player, had been due to give evidence by videolink on Wednesday afternoon, after a work commitment kept him away from the morning session — City host PSG at the Etihad on Wednesday night. As The Times reported, he never got the chance. During the lunch break, Mogan suffered a seizure and was taken to hospital by ambulance. District Judge Mary Dowrick refused an application to continue the trial in his absence, and the case is now expected to resume at a later date. Mogan's bail conditions already ban him from attending regulated football grounds.
So what: a long wait for an answer
The consequences of the adjournment fall most heavily on the man who was allegedly abused. Semenyo reported the incident quickly and through the proper channels, the authorities identified a suspect within a day, and yet more than a year on, the forward must prepare to give his evidence all over again at a rearranged hearing — in the middle of a season in which he is a key player for City, starting with Wednesday night's Champions League meeting with PSG. Liverpool, meanwhile, played on without him in the stands: the club's European campaign continued in Linz against LASK on Wednesday, a reminder that football's calendar never pauses for its conscience.
Cases like this are the test of everything football says about racism. Stadium bans, arrests and prosecutions only carry weight if they reach a conclusion, and every adjournment stretches the distance between the incident and any judgement. Whatever verdict the court eventually reaches, the delay itself is now part of the story.
Beyond the Final Whistle: Semenyo did everything the anti-racism campaigns ask of a player — he reported it, he co-operated, and he got on with his job. Fourteen months later he is still waiting for the system to finish its part. Nobody is to blame for a medical emergency in a courtroom, and Mogan is entitled to his day in court like anyone else. But a process this slow serves nobody: not the player reliving the night, not the accused living under a stadium ban, and not the supporters who were promised that abuse at a football match would be dealt with swiftly and seriously.
Should football do more to speed up abuse cases, or is the ordinary court process the only fair way? Tell us in the comments.
