Former Tottenham striker Garth Crooks, now a BBC presenter, believes Terry should still face action from the FA despite his defence that he was only repeating what he believed Ferdinand had accused him of saying.

Crooks said on www.guardian.co.uk: “I believe it was wrong of him to say these words under any circumstances – and though Terry has been found not to have committed a criminal offence, the FA must now decide whether the former England captain should be charged for contravening its own rules.

“If the FA don’t act on the undisputed facts, and find Terry guilty of bringing the game into disrepute, a lot of good people are saying to me that there’s no point in getting involved in the game at a senior level.”

Crooks also criticised the FA for not acting sooner.

He added: “The real problem in the Terry case began once the FA failed to take immediate action.

“This lack of fibre by the governing body to act instantly when Terry gave them a statement after the verbal clash with Ferdinand, threw the entire procedure into chaos – forcing everyone associated with the game to either dive for cover or sit on the fence.

“It may have appeared expedient to delay matters at the time but once the police appeared on the scene the FA lost control of the process and the dynamic dramatically changed. The football fraternity suddenly became polarised: the dinosaurs who felt it was no more than two players engaged in a slanging match; and the others convinced Terry had gone too far.”

The FA can still bring charges even though Terry was found not guilty in court because they have a lower burden of proof – Liverpool’s Luis Suarez was banned last season for racially abusing Patrice Evra but that case never went to court.

An FA spokesman said: “The FA notes the decision in the John Terry case and will now seek to conclude its own enquiries. The FA will make no further comment at this time.”

Meanwhile, players’ chief Gordon Taylor has admitted football’s image has been damaged by the revelations during the Terry court case of the vile insults traded between top professionals.

Taylor, chief executive of the Professional Footballers’ Association, wants the FA’s Respect campaign to be stepped up for the new season with players taking more responsibility for being role models.

He also suggested the FA are in “a difficult position” over whether they charge Terry.

Taylor told the Press Association: “It has been an unedifying process and the game has been damaged as a result of the dirty linen being washed in public.

“I now want to see an improvement in the Respect campaign. It is not just the line between what is banter and what is illegal, so much of what we have heard this week needs to be cut out.

“The players are role models and everything now gets picked up in a match on television. These insults and this language leads to things that should not be said.”

Liverpool’s Luis Suarez was banned by the FA for eight matches for racially abusing Patrice Evra last season, and Taylor says players should be in no doubt about a line that cannot be crossed.

He added: “There are no grey areas any more. Players now know exactly what they can say and what they can’t. It’s the biggest game in the world and players who earn big money know the cameras and microphones are always on them and should be very mindful of what they are saying and doing.

“The Respect campaign has got to be stepped up.”