Three Man United players refuse the knee after Chelsea boos

On Sunday, 25 October 2026, three Premier League players – Manchester United centre back Ayden Heaven and Bournemouth forwards Rayan and Tyler Adams – chose to remain standing as the anti‑racism knee gesture was performed before the Old Trafford clash, a decision that followed boos from Chelsea supporters ahead of their Tottenham game.

All Liverpool and Brighton players took the knee at Anfield, and every Crystal Palace and Newcastle player did so at Selhurst Park on the same day. These clubs demonstrated the majority’s participation in the campaign.

The refusal by Heaven, Rayan and Adams follows earlier refusals this weekend by Issa Diop of Ipswich Town and Marc Guehi of Manchester City. Both players remained standing before their respective kick‑offs, adding to the growing list of dissenters.

Earlier refusals set the scene

Rayan and Adams had already kept their stance the previous Sunday when Bournemouth beat Sunderland, while Heaven was absent from United’s draw at Leeds United.

Last week the Bournemouth duo were joined by Manchester City defender Marc Guehi, Ipswich Town’s Issa Diop, Everton’s Ainsley Maitland‑Niles and Leeds United’s Dominic Calvert‑Lewin in not taking the knee. Maitland‑Niles was named on the bench for Everton’s trip to Arsenal and therefore did not feature on the pitch during the gesture.

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Premier League's anti‑racism framework

The Premier League has offered the kneel opportunity across two weekends this month as part of its ‘No Room for Racism’ initiative. The programme, introduced in 2020, limits the gesture to match rounds falling within the initiative and was agreed by club captains to be performed twice over the 38‑game season.

After last week’s snub, Marc Guehi said the gesture had ‘lost its meaning’ and remained standing, even clapping, before Manchester City’s Villa Park fixture against Aston Villa. City boss Enzo Maresca replied, ‘No, the players are already aware of the information.’

Issa Diop doubled down when Ipswich hosted Nottingham Forest at Portman Road, becoming the sole player on the pitch to stay upright while his teammates and the Forest starters knelt. Diop has not spoken publicly about his decision, and the episode has split opinion among players.

Individual views on respect

Leeds manager Daniel Farke explained Dominic Calvert‑Lewin’s reasoning, quoting the striker: ‘No, I don’t go down. I show my respect by standing up.’ Farke praised the campaign as a positive example of sport promoting unity across different backgrounds.

The anti‑racism gesture was first introduced across all matches in 2020 after the death of George Floyd, halted in August 2022, and later reinstated for designated rounds under the No Room for Racism scheme. Opposition has been voiced, notably by Wilfried Zaha in 2021 and by the England women’s Lionesses, whose captain Lucy Bronze said the message had weakened after racist abuse targeted Jess Carter.