The vile chant directed at Phil Foden’s mother by Manchester United supporters is, sadly, just the latest example of a stomach-churning trend marring the game.
Pep Guardiola told the punters responsible that they should be ‘ashamed’ after the song was audible during Sky Sports’ live coverage of the derby on Sunday.
Foden himself could be seen ironically clapping the supporters and giving them a thumbs up, and he was jeered after being hooked in the 58th minute at Old Trafford.
However, it is understood the Football Association won’t take action. The 24-year-old later took to Instagram with a brief, defiant message, posting: ‘We keep going’.
There have been numerous cases of offensive chants from the stands over the years and several of the world’s biggest players, past and present, have been affected.
Here, Mail Sport takes a look at the most repugnant incidents…
Phil Foden’s mother was the subject of vile chants from Manchester United supporters
Foden was spotted sarcastically gesturing back at those responsible at Old Trafford
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said the matchgoers should be ‘ashamed’
Phil Foden’s mum
Foden came under fire during the 0-0 draw and City are understood to be shocked and disgusted by how many United supporters were involved.
‘It’s a lack of class,’ said Guardiola post-match. ‘But it’s not United, it’s the people, you know? We are so exposed, people who are on the screen in world football: managers, owners, and football players especially.
‘Honestly, I don’t understand the mind of the people involving the mum of Phil. It’s a lack of integrity, class, and they should be ashamed.’
Sections of the United home support could be heard labelling Foden’s mother, Claire Rowlands, 44, a ‘s**g’. United sources said they condemn abusive chants.
Sections of the United home support loudly labelled Claire Rowlands, 44, a ‘s**g’
Foden played 58 minutes of the game and was jeered again as he was substituted
Posh Spice
Victoria Beckham was the subject of X-rated chants, also from United supporters, while watching her husband David play for the club.
They began dating in 1997 after Posh Spice attended a United match and married in 1999. But just a year before, at the World Cup, Beckham found himself at the heart of a storm after being sent off against Argentina for kicking out at Diego Simeone.
After returning to United, Beckham was vilified and his partner was also unable to escape, as matchgoers loudly sung: ‘Posh Spice takes it up the a***’.
Addressing the chant in the Netflix documentary ‘Beckham’, Victoria said: ‘It’s embarrassing. It’s hurtful.’
But David admitted the brutal treatment only motivated him. ‘As horrible as it was to look up at Victoria in the stand, it was the one thing that spurred me on,’ he said.
Victoria Beckham was targeted by an X-rated chant while in the stand at Old Trafford
She began dating David in 1997 after she visited the ground before they tied the knot in 1999
Morgan Gibbs-White
Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White fired back at stick taunts from Wolves supporters about his influencer partner Britney De Villiers.
Gibbs-White, 25, returned to Molineux with his current club, who he joined from Forest for £42.5million in August 2022, but the home crowd made their feelings known, frustrated at the manner in which he had departed.
The atmosphere turned nasty when supporters were heard chanting ‘your girlfriend’s a s**g’ when Gibbs-White touched the ball in the game’s early stages.
But Gibbs-White enjoyed the last laugh as just moments after the taunts started, he scored for Forest, rounding off a swift counter-attack. He then ran toward the corner flag and celebrated poignantly by sticking both fingers in his ears.
Gibbs-White and De Villiers have a son, Graysen, who was born in November 2023.
Wolves supporters taunted Morgan Gibbs-White’s girlfriend Britney De Villiers (left)
De Villiers (pictured) is an influencer with 274,000 followers on Instagram
Scott Brown
Shocking footage emerged in 2019 of Rangers supporters singing a vile chant about the deaths of former Celtic boss Tommy Burns and captain Scott Brown’s sister.
Burns died in 2008 of skin cancer while Brown’s sibling, Fiona, passed away the same year aged just 21. But after Rangers beat Ross County, some individuals could be heard chanting: ‘Scott Brown’s sister’s sh***ing Tommy Burns in hell.’
The song was widely condemned, including by many Rangers supporters.
Former Celtic captain Scott Brown was taunted over the tragic death of his sister, Fiona
Cheryl Cole
Pop sensation Cheryl Tweedy was married to former Chelsea defender Ashley Cole between 2006 and 2010, before she filed for divorce.
During an appearance for the Blues against Leeds, Cole was subjected to rude chants over his former partner just seconds after he was brought on as a substitute.
‘Cheryl Cole, she’s having a party,’ supporters loudly sang in the stands. ‘She’s having a threesome with [El-Hadji] Diouf and [Luke] Varney.’
Cheryl Tweedy, Ashley Cole’s ex-wife, was the topic of a repulsive Leeds chant
Cole is pictured alongside Victoria Beckham during an England World Cup match in 2006
John Terry
Chelsea legend John Terry admitted he had regularly heard his mother, Sue, labelled a ‘s**g’ during his playing career. But on one occasion, he was taunted by thousands of Liverpool supporters after it emerged she had dated a man from Merseyside.
‘My mum dated a guy from Liverpool for a while,’ Terry said. ‘The Liverpool fans made up a song that my mum “loves Scouse c**k”.’
A chant about John Terry’s mother, Sue (pictured), said she ‘loves Scouse c**k’
Vardy taunts
Manchester United supporters ripped into Jamie Vardy during a 3-0 victory over Leicester City at Old Trafford in February 2023.
Vardy’s wife Rebekah took Coleen Rooney, the wife of Red Devils great Wayne, to court for libel but lost in the ‘Wagatha Christie’ case.
The United faithful ensured that Vardy could not forget about the feud and chanted ‘Jamie Vardy, your wife’s a grass’ seconds after he came off the bench.
That was followed by ‘Rooney, Rooney, Rooney’ as a tribute to their club legend.
Manchester United supporters ripped into Jamie Vardy during a match at Old Trafford
The song referenced Rebekah Vardy’s ‘Wagatha Christie’ case with Wayne Rooney’s wife
Coleen Rooney
But Coleen Rooney was also previously placed in the crosshairs, having been targeted with misogynistic chants from Watford supporters.
On this occasion, the Hornets were playing her husband’s former employers Plymouth Argyle, before they sacked him as head coach in December 2024.
Sections of the crowd were heard making sexual slurs toward the 39-year-old while she appeared on I’m A Celebrity during the game.
A group of supporters repeatedly chanted ‘She’s getting s****ed in the jungle’, abuse which was clearly audible during Sky Sports’ live coverage.
Coleen Rooney was the subject of misogynistic chants from Watford supporters
A group of matchgoers repeatedly chanted ‘she’s getting s****ed in the jungle’
John Terry and Frank Lampard
In April 2009, John Terry hit out at West Ham supporters for the taunts aimed at him and his team-mate Frank Lampard during a 1-0 victory for Chelsea at Upton Park.
A number of individuals in the home end sang ‘you let your children down’ to Lampard, referencing an infamous call to a London radio station in which he sought to defend himself on air against accusations of being a bad father.
Terry revealed his mother did not attend the game after West Ham websites encouraged supporters to sing ‘John Terry, your mum’s a thief’.
Sue was arrested and cautioned after attempting to travel home with £800 worth of stolen shopping from Tesco and Marks & Spencer in 2009.
