Burrell's racism allegations upheld by RFU investigation

Luther Burrell's comments about racist abuse he received during his career were "true on the basis of probability", the Rugby Football Union (RFU) concluded on Tuesday, following an investigation into the former England centre's allegations.

In an interview with the Mail on Sunday last year, the 35-year-old, who won 15 caps and played for Leeds, Sale, Northampton Saints and Newcastle, said racism was rife in the sport, detailing comments that were discriminatory but were passed off as "banter".

In the interview, Burrell also highlighted the use of a racial term in a WhatsApp group chat.

After the publication of the interview, Newcastle launched an investigation to determine whether any of the incidents occurred during Burrell's time at the club, before asking the RFU to conduct the investigation.

The RFU said it had interviewed 93 Newcastle employees as part of the inquiry.

"On balance of probability, the allegations made in the Mail on Sunday article are true but there is insufficient evidence to say whether all the allegations occurred at the club, apart from the WhatsApp message which contained a racist comment," the RFU said in a statement.

"The player was found to be subject to a further two specific incidents of racial abuse... there was support for the allegations in the evidence of at least two other employees of the club.

"The player's evidence was found to be reliable and his motivation for making the allegations was his wish to eradicate racist behaviour from rugby union."

The RFU said Newcastle had co-operated throughout the process, adding that the club would implement changes to policies and procedures including education, training and the establishment of clear whistle-blowing processes.

"Luther was very brave to