Chelsea striker and Matildas captain Sam Kerr is about to face trial after being accused of racially aggravated harassment of a London police officer.
The 30-year-old Australian worldwide pleaded not responsible to the offense at a courtroom listening to on Monday, the Crown Prosecution Service mentioned.
Kerr is scheduled to look at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court docket on February 1, 2025.
It follows an alleged incident in January 2023.
“The cost pertains to an incident involving a police officer responding to a criticism involving a taxi fare on January 30, 2023 in Twickenham,” a Metropolitan Police spokesman mentioned.
She was charged on January 21 “with a racially aggravated offense below Part 4A [of the] Public Order Act 1986,” they added.
Nonetheless, Kerr denied the cost at a pre-trial listening to at Kingston upon Thames Crown Court docket on Monday.
The striker is at present sidelined after struggling a concussion an anterior cruciate ligament damage on the membership's hot-weather coaching camp in Morocco in January.
He has scored 99 targets in 128 video games since becoming a member of Chelsea in 2019, and is his nation's document goalscorer with 64 targets in 125 video games.
Talking to the media in Adelaide on Tuesday, Soccer Australia chief govt James Johnson mentioned the federation had turn out to be conscious of “very critical allegations” within the information that morning.
“There isn’t any place for racism in our sport,” he mentioned.
“On the similar time, Sam has rights, pure justice rights, procedural rights that he has to work with and we are going to respect that.”
Requested whether or not Kerr – arguably Australia's greatest sporting star – ought to stand down as captain of the nationwide staff till the courtroom case is performed out, Mr Johnson mentioned the governing physique wanted to “set up the info” earlier than deciding his “subsequent step”.
“We're attempting to unravel it in the mean time … we’ve to seek out out what actually occurred.”
“I haven't spoken to Sam aside from a textual content message to verify on his well-being.”
Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson advised reporters in Sydney he was “shocked” by the allegations however couldn’t say the rest.
“The one factor I can touch upon is my expertise and interplay with Sam as an individual and as a footballer, and I solely have a constructive expertise with that,” he mentioned.
Throughout her time at Chelsea, Kerr received 4 WSL titles, three FA Cups, two Girls's League Cups and the Girls's Group Defend.
It has additionally been nominated for the Ballon d'Or Féminin – the primary award in girls's soccer – since its inception in 2018, putting second final yr.
