A teenager has denied sending a racist message to England defender Jess Carter on Instagram, hearing at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court has heard. Aaryan Aggarwal, 19, allegedly used a racial slur after calling the footballer “stupid” and “ugly” on 17 July 2025, the court was told. Aggarwal pleaded not guilty to sending a public communication that was offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing, and the case has been set for trial in March.
What happened at Euro 2025
The message was sent while Carter was playing in England’s quarter-final at the Women’s Euro 2025 tournament, the prosecutor told the court. Following a game against Sweden, Carter received the message. The timing placed the incident squarely within one of the most high-profile periods in the domestic women’s game, when England’s squad was in the spotlight throughout the tournament.
The defendant, of Dickens Rise in Chigwell, Essex, was arrested in September in connection with the police investigation, the court heard. He has denied the allegation, entering a not guilty plea to the charge of sending a public communication that was offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing — a statutory provision that covers a range of harmful messages sent in the public domain.
The case and the charge
The charge reflects the legal framework around communications that cause offence or harm when transmitted publicly. Sending a message that is menacing, or that is grossly offensive or indecent, can constitute an offence under the relevant legislation, and prosecutions in this area have become more common as police and prosecutors have sought to address abuse directed at public figures, including sportspeople.
In this instance, the allegation is that the message combined personal insults with a racial slur. The court will determine whether the prosecution can prove the elements of the charge beyond reasonable doubt at the trial in March. Until then, the defendant’s denial stands, and the case remains at the pre-trial stage.
Why it matters
Cases of this kind sit at the intersection of several ongoing conversations in the UK: the abuse faced by women in sport, the persistence of racism in football, and the legal boundaries around online communications. England’s women’s team has attracted huge audiences in recent years, and with that visibility has come increased scrutiny of the way players are talked about and targeted. Allegations of racist abuse, even when they arise from a single message sent to an individual player, feed into a wider concern about the environment in which elite sportswomen operate.
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The legal process itself also matters. A charge under the communications provision is a serious step, and the fact that the case has reached a plea and a trial date indicates that the Crown Prosecution Service has assessed the evidence as meeting the threshold for prosecution. The outcome, whenever it comes, will contribute to the broader record of how the justice system handles racist abuse directed at athletes.
What happens next
The case is due to stand trial in March, at which point the prosecution and defence will present their accounts and the court will decide whether the offence is proved. In the meantime, the denial and the upcoming trial mean the matter remains active in the criminal calendar.
Beyond the individual case, the broader question is whether the pattern of abuse reported by sportswomen leads to further action — whether from the authorities, the football authorities, or the platforms used to send such messages. The incident, set against the backdrop of a major tournament, is likely to keep the issue in view.
Source: BBC News. Details of the charge, the court hearing, the defendant’s name and plea, and the timing of the alleged message are attributed to the reporting.
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