The FA have taken to probe vile comments by ex-AFC Wimbledon managing director Danny Macklin about a female employee at the club.
The Football Association are investigating reports that Macklin was recorded in his office saying he wanted to ‘murder’ the Wimbledon head of supporter services and ticketing member Rebecca Markham.
As per The Times, Macklin, who joined Wimbledon in November 2022, was recorded in his office making the remarks, where he stated in one message that he would like to ‘murder’ her and labelled the club executive as a ‘f***ing s**g and a ‘s***’.
AFC Wimbledon said the club acted to “promptly resolve” the incident, with Macklin leaving his role at the League Two club on the 8th of September.
AFC Wimbledon said in a statement: “The Club is aware of a report today in the national press about AFC Wimbledon and we therefore issue the following statement in response.
“AFC Wimbledon strives to be a responsible, inclusive and modern fan-owned club. As such, it takes its obligation to act properly and set an example, as well as its duty of care towards employees and fans, extremely seriously.
“Behaviour such as that being alleged was and is not tolerated, nor is it representative of the culture at AFC Wimbledon.
“Once we became aware of the matter we acted appropriately in accordance with our responsibilities and values to promptly resolve it.
“For legal reasons we are not able to say more.”
AFC Wimbledon managing director Danny Macklin resigned after ‘describing a female employee as a f****** s**g and claiming he wanted to murder her’ in secret recordings https://t.co/gByIt2jvIJ
— Mail Sport (@MailSport) September 25, 2023
Vile horrible man Danny Macklin is… and to think that his resignation was somehow pinned on what the fans said about him 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️ pic.twitter.com/QU3pD5bN5g
— Daniel Evans (@daniel_afcw) September 25, 2023
Danny Macklin statement for those unable to see his posts. pic.twitter.com/qiut4ieu2V
— AfcWanRis (@WimDorPhx) September 26, 2023
The chief executive of WIF (Women in Football), Yvonne Harrison, told Women’s Hour on BBC Radio 4: “We don’t know the details of how the club have handled it. They have talked about dealing with it in line with their values, which is great and we want to see action.
“We recently called in our Open Doors Agenda for action and clear pathways and policies for reporting, but [also] dealing with and having consequences for behaviour like this.
“We know from a survey that we did this year that 82% of women working in the football industry experience discrimination,” she added.
“It is significant and up from 66% in 2020. We also know that nearly one in two women are experiencing sexism in the workplace, and very few women are reporting it.
“The reason they tell us that they don’t report it is that very little happens. They don’t see action.”
Macklin made the secret recording soon after the pair had announced a partnership with Her Game Too, a campaign group which raises awareness of sexual abuse in football.
Back in January, he also warned fans not to sing sexist songs, saying: “The repeated use of chants that are not family friendly will prevent us from attracting new fans.”
WIF’s Open Doors Agenda was set up to call on world governing body Fifa and other organisations to ensure that women working in the game “feel safe, welcome and supported”.
“There is still a real cultural piece to be done in football around women belonging and being there because of their merit and what they are good at and what they bring to a team and that dynamic – and not just because they are ticking a box,” Harrison added.
Macklin revealed his departure from the club via Twitter saying his immediate focus would be to spend “much needed time with my young family” before taking up a new challenge.
His profile has since been made private private, and hasn’t commented publicly on the report in The Times.
In a statement on the 4th September announcing he would leave the club, AFC Wimbledon said Macklin had “provided the platforms and impetus for the club to continue its journey towards being successful and sustainable”.
The Times report that his his comments had been recorded by an individual, with a military background, who had taken up the role of club security officer.
He placed the device inside Macklin’s office at their former home, Cherry Red Records stadium, catching the language used.
After Macklin revealed an intention to welcome initiatives that encourage more girls and women to attend the club’s games, or take part in activities, he resigned with it since discovered he had made a host of derogatory and abusive comments about Markham to other colleagues.
One exchange reportedly recorded Macklin stating: ‘I f***ing want to put her [Markham] through a f****** window… I’ve never wanted to kill someone, but I’d like to kill her. F***ing s**t.’
He also described her in another conversation as a ‘f***ing b****’ and said he wanted to ‘murder her’.
Markham, who became Wimbledon’s head of supporter services and ticketing in June this year, has previously worked at Premier League clubs including Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, West Ham and Fulham.
Macklin left his role atWimbledon in September, though the club didn’t reveal the circumstances surrounding his exit, announcing he had left in a statement, claiming they ‘appreciated’ the former executive’s hard work.
In response to the reported recordings, Macklin told the Times: ‘For legal reasons I make no comment.’
In his resignation statement, he thanked supporters and colleagues.
‘I played a leading role in driving resilience across the club in us individually and most importantly collectively realising potentials and have truly enjoyed working alongside my hard-working colleagues in both the footballing and non-footballing departments.’
The recording device is said to have been placed by Matthew Wells, who was concerned over abuse in the workplace, according to The Times.
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