Three Spurs fans are reported to have been arrested for using the word ‘Yid’ at White Hart Lane.

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust claimed on the social media site Twitter that three fans were arrested and charged under Section Five of the Public Order Act for religious or racial hatred.

The trust said it was “saddened, but certainly not surprised” at a decision by the Crown Prosecution Service to deem the use of the term in any context a prosecutable offence.

The trust and many Spurs fans say they use ‘the Y word’ to reclaim the term from other teams’ supporters, who use it as an anti-Semitic epithet.

A Spurs fan was arrested at White Hart Lane on October 6 last year, and the trust said it is working with its legal team to establish a defence to the charges.

A statement on the trust’s website said: “It remains our firm belief that, when used in a footballing context by Tottenham Hotspur supporters, there is no intent or desire to offend any member of the Jewish Community.

"We will continue to offer advice and support to any fan arrested by the Metropolitan Police for using the term in such circumstances.”