Rugby Australia set to terminate Israel Folau's contract over social media post
The body says it has made "repeated" attempts to contact the fullback but he has failed to communicate with them.
Thursday 11 April 2019 12:31, UK
Rugby Australia and the New South Wales Rugby Union say they intend to terminate Israel Folau's contract.
It comes after a social media post in which Folau, one of the sport's top players, said "hell awaits" gay people.
Folau published a message on his Instagram account saying hell awaits "drunks, homosexuals, adulterers, liars, fornicators, thieves, atheists, idolators".
RA chief executive Raelene Castle said she and NSW Rugby Union chief Andrew Hore made "repeated attempts" to contact the 30-year-old Waratahs star directly and via his representatives but he failed to communicate with them.
Their intention to terminate his contract if he cannot offer a good reason for the controversial post comes just five months before the start of the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
The Wallabies star has won 73 caps and would have been a key part of Australia head coach Michael Cheika's plans.
Ms Castle said: "As a code we have made it clear to Israel formally and repeatedly that any social media posts or commentary that is in any way disrespectful to people because of their sexuality will result in disciplinary action.
"In the absence of compelling mitigating factors, it is our intention to terminate his contract.
"Whilst Israel is entitled to his religious beliefs, the way in which he has expressed these beliefs is inconsistent with the values of the sport. We want to make it clear he does not speak for the game with his recent social media posts.
"Israel has failed to understand that the expectation of him as a Rugby Australia and NSW Waratahs employee is that he cannot share material on social media that condemns, vilifies or discriminates against people on the basis of their sexuality.
"Rugby is a sport that continuously works to unite people. We want everyone to feel safe and welcome in our game and no vilification based on race, gender, religion or sexuality.
"It is unacceptable and no language that isolates, divides, or insults people based on any of those factors can be tolerated."
Pride in Sport, which aims to make Australian sport inclusive for LGBT people, later welcomed the decisive action taken by Castle and Hore.
Andrew Purchas, founder of the Sydney Convicts, Australia's first and most successful gay rugby club, said: "This unprecedented course of action sends a strong message of what will and will not be tolerated in rugby.
"And they've made it clear that homophobia and transphobia has no place in the sport."
In April last year Folau, a fundamentalist Christian, posted a reply to a social media commentator in which he said "hell" is where gay people were destined to go.
No sanctions were taken against him and he signed a new four-year contract with Rugby Australia at the end of the year.
The new deal was understood to have new clauses relating to his use of social media.