David Lammy says moment for taking the knee has 'probably passed' after Lionesses said they will no longer use anti-racism gesture before matches
The Foreign Secretary said kneeling had been adopted at a 'moment in time' after the murder of George Floyd in the US.
He also insisted he had not seen people making the gesture for 'some years' - even though it routinely happens at football games.
The England women's team has announced they will not take the knee before kick-off after one of their stars Jess Carter was subjected to racist abuse during the Euros tournament.
In a statement, the Lionesses said 'another way' needed to be found to tackle racism and football must look at 'what more can be done'.
Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner were among the senior politicians pictured taking the knee at the height of the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020.
However, the roots of the protest go back much further, including Colin Kaepernick using it in the NFL in 2016.
Asked on Times Radio this morning about the gesture, Mr Lammy said: 'I think that was a moment in time after the murder of George Floyd.
'I think that moment has probably passed. I haven't seen actually for some years people using that particular gesture.'
The Tottenham MP - a Spurs fan - stressed that football had come a long way since the 1970s but highlighted that problems persist.
"I think that football has done a lot, since I started going to watch matches with my father at Spurs back in the 1970s, to bear down on racism across the sport,' he said.
'But clearly there is more to do and it's distressing and very sad that these young players are receiving racism in the way that they are.
'I think the overwhelming majority of people that go and watch is now very much a family game go with a pure heart and are certainly not going to dish out abuse on women playing football.
'It's for players and communities to show their concern about supporting a space that is free from abuse in the way that they think best appropriate."
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17 minutes ago
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'What is Sarina doing?' - Wright 'baffled' by Wiegman call in Euro 2025 final
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'Michelle [Agyemang] came on and, obviously, she's amazing, Young Player of the Tournament, only coming off the bench and doing enough to win, that was amazing on her part. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video 'But I think she [Agyemang] needs Russo on there with her in this time. 'They would have caused Spain so many problems because Russo would have dropped off, she would have been in the box. 'What is Sarina doing taking her off?! What's she doing taking her off?! I couldn't believe it.' According to Wright, Wiegman has proven beyond doubt that she is a 'genius' and a 'legend' – but hauling Russo off with 20 minutes remaining made little sense in the context of the match. 'She was feeding off scraps,' Wright said of Russo. 'When you're playing in a game like that, all you're hoping for is one chance that you can try and take, which she did, and then you get a second wind. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video 'When she went off you could see it. She's so sweet and she's saying thank you to everybody but you can see it in her mind, she must be thinking, 'What the f***'s going on?! What are you taking me off for?!' 'In the end, she's very fortunate. She's obviously shown she's a great coach with three European Championships on the spin. That's legendary. 'But some of the decisions… you're thinking to yourself, 'If that's what you're doing on purpose because you see the outcome in your head then you are a genius!', but she is a genius with what she's done.' Wright was similarly taken aback that Wiegman opted to 'gamble' on Lauren James' fitness when she had a player of Kelly's quality raring to go the start. 'With Lauren James, it's a Euros final. If she thinks, 'You know what? If I can get something out of myself I might be able to do it', then you're going to play,' he continued. 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