Football Association chairman David Bernstein has said that the governing body must clamp down hard on inappropriate and discriminatory behaviour.
The FA yesterday decided to charge Rio Ferdinand over comments he made on Twitter towards Ashley Cole, and Bernstein has made it clear the FA will not tolerate any unacceptable behaviour.
"We must continue to be tough as a regulatory body on sanctioning and disciplining inappropriate behaviour," PA Sport quotes Bernstein as saying.
"Wherever possible we must bring incidents of discriminatory abuse to charge and all participants must know the consequences of their actions.
"This goes for the Twittersphere as much as on the pitch, in the stands and in the recruitment processes across football."
Ferdinand has until tomorrow afternoon to respond to the charges against him.
