Chelsea defender John Terry has been stripped of his England captaincy by the Football’s Association chairman, David Bernstein. Bernstein delivered the news to the player in a phone call on Friday morning.

This is the second time that Terry has been stripped of his title as captain for off-pitch reasons. In this case Terry faces charges for his alleged racist remarks against Queens Park Rangers player Anton Ferdinand, the trial for which has now been scheduled for the 9th July so as not to interfere with this summer’s European Championships.

Because the Euro 2012 takes place a week before the trial date it is possible that Terry could captain the national side during the championship. However, Anti-racist campaigners have displayed disapproval of allowing a man accused of racism to lead his country a sporting event. Piara Power, executive director of Football Against Racism in Europe said that ”The seriousness of the allegations mean that he can’t lead the nation. The FA must do the right thing.”

England manager, Fabio Capello, who is currently out of the country and will be returning to watch a Premier League game tomorrow, had selected Terry for the matches against Spain and Sweden last November despite the allegations.

Since the criminal charge was announced in December 2011, Terry has consistently denied that he ever racially abused the QPR defender saying that “I will fight tooth and nail to prove my innocence. I have campaigned against racism and believe there is no place for it in society.”

Terry was first stripped of his England captaincy by Capello when it was revealed that the defender was having an affair with his team mate and friend Wayne Bridges’s wife. Capello felt it was best for the squad that he not lead them as captain.

Source: The Guardian