Mark Sampson: FA could re-open inquiry into England women's manager

The Football Association could re-open its investigation into racism claims against England women's boss Mark Sampson after further evidence was submitted to the governing body.

Sampson was alleged to have asked mixed race England midfielder Drew Spence whether she had been arrested during a tournament in 2015, a claim which he denied.

The claim was first made by Spence's England and Chelsea team-mate Eniola Aluko, and Spence has now submitted written evidence to support it.

Two investigations cleared Sampson of any wrongdoing, but questions have been asked about the thoroughness of them as Spence was not interviewed during either process.

Sampson's alleged comments are understood to have left the then-22-year-old feeling shocked.

An FA spokesperson said: "This is not a new investigation. We have always said if new information comes to light we will look into it appropriately."

Senior FA executives are set to face a parliamentary inquiry over the investigations after Aluko initially raised a "bullying and harassment" grievance against Sampson in response to a cultural review.

Striker Aluko, who has 102 caps and is a qualified lawyer, and fellow England forward Lianne Sanderson have also been invited to give evidence to a select committee hearing planned for mid-October.

In a separate allegation, Aluko has claimed Sampson told her to make sure her Nigerian relatives did not bring the Ebola virus to an England game at Wembley in 2014.

On Tuesday, Sampson appeared to contradict his own evidence on this issue after denying he had a conversation with Aluko about Ebola.

But in the independent investigation, he told barrister Katharine Newton that he had joked with Aluko about her being called Ebola instead of Eniola by a cold-caller.