Mathys Tel: Tottenham ‘disgusted’ by racist abuse of forward after Uefa Super Cup defeat

Tottenham have said they are “disgusted” by the racial abuse received by forward Mathys Tel following their defeat by Paris St-Germain in the Uefa Super Cup.

The club, who lost 4-3 on penalties after letting slip a two-goal lead, said people who had sent abusive messages to Tel on social media were “nothing but cowards”.

Tel, 20, came on as a substitute in the 79th minute and was one of two Spurs players who failed to convert from the spot in the penalty shootout.

“Mathys showed bravery and courage to step forward and take a penalty, yet those who abuse him are nothing but cowards – hiding behind anonymous usernames and profiles to spout their abhorrent views,” Tottenham said.

“We will work with the authorities and social media platforms to take the strongest possible action against any individual we are able to identify.

“We stand with you, Mathys.”

Spurs’ statement comes after England defender Jess Carter revealed she had been the target of racist abuse during Euro 2025 last month.

As a result, the Lionesses stopped the anti-racism gesture of taking a knee before matches as they argued it was “clear we and football need to find another way to tackle racism”.

On Tuesday, Carter said she feared her England team-mate Lauren James would suffer “astronomical” racist abuse if she had been the only player to have missed a penalty in their Euro quarter-final shootout against Sweden.

In June, tennis players – including Britain’s Katie Boulter – demanded more action from social media companies to stop “dangerous” online abuse after Boulter said receiving abusive content and death threats had become “the norm” for athletes.

Europa League winners Tottenham led 2-0 after 84 minutes and were minutes away from claiming their second trophy in three months before PSG fought back, levelling the match when Goncalo Ramos headed in a 94th-minute equaliser.

Spurs defender Micky van de Ven saw his spot-kick saved before Frenchman Tel sent his shot wide. Nuno Mendes held his nerve to convert the winning penalty for PSG.

Tottenham signed Tel on a permanent deal, worth around £30m, in June after he joined the club on loan in January.

He made 20 appearances for the club last season, scoring three goals and was an unused substitute for their victory over Manchester United in the Europa League final.