This article employs a critical sampling approach to analyze football forums discussing racism and Islamophobia. The thematic analysis of 1,064 posts reveals five main themes: a perceived decrease in racism, denial and minimization of racism and Islamophobia, perceptions of increased racism, views on victims and perpetrators, and suggested actions. The study finds that football fans predominantly view racism as overt and fail to recognize or address implicit racism. Although overt instances of racism and Islamophobia are rare in the forums, fans' tendency to downplay racism and distance themselves from it hinders effective anti-racist action.