Man charged after wearing shirt appearing to make offensive reference to Hillsborough disaster at FA Cup final

James White, aged 33, of Warwickshire was charged today (Sunday, June 4) with displaying threatening or abusive writing likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress, Metropolitan Police said.

The Metropolitan Police Events Twitter account retweeted a picture on Saturday of a man wearing a Manchester United shirt that had the number 97 on the back and the words ‘Not Enough’.

The Met said: “He was arrested after being seen wearing a shirt which appeared to refer in offensive terms to those who died in the Hillsborough tragedy.

“Criminal proceedings are active and the defendants has the right to a fair trial. There should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.”

White was bailed to appear at Willesden Magistrates' Court on Monday, June 19.

On April 15, 1989, 97 football fans died as a result of a crush at a match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield. An inquest jury ruled in 2016 that they were unlawfully killed amid a number of police errors.

Today, the FA said in a statement: “The FA strongly condemns the actions of the individual who wore a shirt referencing the Hillsborough disaster ahead of the Emirates FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.

“We saw a photograph of the offensive shirt on social media and immediately started working to identify the perpetrator.

“Our security team were able to quickly locate the individual based on the image, and we welcome the swift action which was then taken by the police.

“We will not tolerate abuse relating to Hillsborough or any football tragedy at Wembley Stadium and we will continue to work with the authorities to ensure strong action is taken against perpetrators.”