Racism is intolerable in any sport

Dwayne De Rosario, D.C. United’s attacking midfielder/striker, quickly condemned the “undoubtedly racist incident,” that took place on Thursday night in London.

“Come ON!!!” De Rosario wrote on his Facebook page.

You might have thought the Canadian-native DeRosario was deploring yet another racially charged action directed at a player on the pitch. But he wasn’t talking about soccer. Nor was the London in question the soon-to-be host of the Summer Olympics, located across the pond.

This was the NHL — not the EPL, the English Premier League.

DeRosario was writing about former King and current Flyer Wayne Simmonds who had a banana tossed at him from a fan in the stands during an exhibition game between Philadelphia and Detroit in London, Ontario. Simmonds, who is black, was raised in Scarborough, on the east side of Toronto, where De Rosario was born.

Not long after the incident came almost instant condemnation from friends and NHL colleagues of Simmonds and a swift denunciation the next morning from Commissioner Gary Bettman, who called it “an obviously stupid and ignorant action by one individual.”

In the aftermath, more than one hockey player referenced European soccer, and unfortunately, futbol is never far from the surface in terms of racial incidents. Page after page on the Internet painstakingly details past examples of egregious behavior at soccer games — accusations of racist remarks, abusive chants, and yes, sadly, banana throwing.

Almost two years ago, midfielder and U.S. national team member Maurice Edu, who was out with a knee injury, alleged that he was racially abused by Rangers’ fans after the Scottish team lost a Champions League game.

His own fans, in fact.

“Not sure what hurt more: result last nite or being racially abused by couple of r own fans as I’m getting in my car,” he wrote on his Twitter page.

Police investigated the incident and Scottish club officials called the fan behavior “moronic.” Two seasons later, Edu remains in Glasgow, and is still tweeting for his 450,000-plus followers.

The Edu incident came four years after The Times took a lengthy look at an apparent upsurge in racism in European soccer. A handful of incidents, in Spain, in particular, drew close examination and experts hoped that the debate could bring forth change.

Not just in Spain but throughout Europe.

And so, how is that going?

One example listed in the 2005 story was about Brazilian icon Roberto Carlos, then of Real Madrid. He was abused by fans of crosstown rival Atletico Madrid, which was hit with a five-figure fine by the Spanish federation.

Earlier this year, Carlos, playing for the Russian team Anzhi Makhachkala, left the field after a banana was thrown at him near the end of the game. The clip of the incident is on YouTube and it is difficult, months later, to watch the slumped shoulders and heartbreaking expression on the face of Carlos. Teammates and support staff patted him on the back on the sideline, and he held up two fingers.

That was to signify two incidents in Russia: Two too many for the legendary defender.

Inter-workings

The inevitable arrived in exceedingly rapid fashion last week at Inter Milan. Coach Gian Piero Gasperini was dismissed on Wednesday, the morning after a 3-1 loss to Novara.

Such is life in Serie A.

Even the fast-revolving door at Inter did result in a slice of history. Gasperini moved on after five games — and no wins, a first in team history. Veteran manager Claudio Ranieri gets the keys to the franchise — for a few minutes, at least.

lisa.dillman@latimes.com twitter.com/reallisa