A man has been arrested by police officers investigating online abuse sent to England defender Jess Carter during the Women’s European Championships earlier this summer.
Lancashire Police arrested a 59-year-old man in Great Harwood on Thursday morning on suspicion of malicious communications in relation to some of the messages.
He has since been released under investigation while enquiries continue, a police statement said.
Cheshire Constabulary Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chief Council (NPCC) lead for football policing, said: “The messages directed towards Jess Carter were appalling and I would like to commend her for standing up to this abuse and assisting with our investigation.
“Nobody should be subjected to such disgusting abuse, and I expect that today’s arrest will be the first of many over the coming months.
“We want to make it clear that racist abuse of this nature will not be tolerated. Everyone is responsible for what they do and say, and we want to ensure offenders cannot hide behind a social media profile to post vile comments.”
