American football player 'too urban' for London nightclub
- Published
NFL player Mark Ingram claims he was turned away from a London nightclub after staff said he was "too urban".
The New Orleans Saint's running back had been spending time in London with some teammates during their off season.
"Brits have been very friendly," the player tweeted last night.
But in a string of messages that followed, Mark explained how he and five friends were denied entry into London nightclub Cirque le Soir.
"I have a story for y'all," he said on Twitter before explaining what happened.
We have dinner with amazing service at @mnky_hse ... , external
Mark tweets about the diverse culture he's been learning about while in London, external
We pull up to @CirqueLeSoir where we have reservations and this is what they tell us ..., external
They told us they were "6 big guys" that are too "Urban" but nobody taller than 5'11 ... , external
In a description of the entrance policy on its Facebook page, external, Cirque le Soir says: "As an exclusive members club, we cannot guarantee entry to anyone and full discretion always lies with the door.
"We particularly discourage casual dress code, intoxicated customers and male heavy entourages."
In a statement sent to Newsbeat, Cirque le Soir said: "We proudly celebrate diversity, not only as part of our shows, but as part of who we are.
"We would not dismiss anyone as 'too urban' and we would not turn anyone away on the basis of their ethnicity, sexuality or any other characteristic - other than those expressed in our door policy.
"We would be very happy to welcome Mark Ingram and his friends - male and female - when they are next in town."
New Orleans is set to play the Miami Dolphins in London in October as part of the NFL's international tour.
So Mark, three of his teammates and two friends came to London ahead of the game to get a feel for the city.
Fans and some big names in the sport have been tweeting the player their support.
Vernon Kay tweets his support to player Mark Ingram, external
A protest took place at another London nightclub - DSTRKT - in 2015, after a group of women claimed two of them were turned away because they were considered "too dark" and "overweight".
"DSTRKT restaurant and late night lounge has always operated an anti-racist door policy," management said at the time.
The website for the circus-themed Cirque le Soir lists the "host of weird and wonderful entertainment", such as fire-eaters and sword swallowers.
And club has been visited by the likes of Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Justin Bieber.
But Mark has tweeted how he's not going to let the incident put a downer on his trip as a whole.
Mark Tweets how everyone in England has been amazing so far, external
And it seems like he's not the only one that feels this way.
Frustrating people are using the shameful @CirqueLeSoir situation to slate UK NFL ... , external
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