Football Association ready to strip John Terry of the England captaincy over racism allegations Terry has captained England - in the friendly against Sweden in November - since his altercation with Ferdinand in a 1-0 defeat at Queens Park Rangers in October. However, that England game was before he had been charged by the Crown Prosecution Service, a move that raised the stakes and the complexity of the issue facing the FA. There is a growing conviction among board members that, for a number of reasons, Terry cannot lead the side out at Wembley against the World Cup finalists. As recently as last week, the FA board agreed at its monthly meeting to let the legal process take its course before reaching any definitive position on Terry's leadership, but the lengthy adjournment announced on Wednesday has altered calculations. With the next board meeting not due until the week before the Holland game, Bernstein has moved to establish whether there is support for decisive action. He is understood to have sought counsel from senior figures including Manchester United chief executive David Gill, his Bolton counterpart Phil Gartside, national game chairman Roger Burden and FA vice-chairman Barry Bright. Gill, Gartside and Premier League chairman Sir Dave Richards were present at a Premier League shareholders meeting attended by Bernstein yesterday, which provided him with an opportunity to gauge the mood in person. The FA has to balance its role as selector of the national side with its wider role as a regulator with responsibility to punish incidents of racism. The Terry-Ferdinand dispute and the Luis Suárez case, which saw the Liverpool striker banned for eight matches for racially abusing Patrice Evra, have thrown that position into stark relief. Having seen its disciplinary arm impose a swingeing ban on Suárez, the FA leadership is open to charges of hypocrisy if it does not take action to address the invidious position in which the charges against Terry have placed them. Terry's situation has not been helped by the position of England manager Fabio Capello, who is understood to be pragmatic about the issue. He restored Terry to the post last year after replacing him with Rio Ferdinand following the revelation of Terry's affair with Wayne Bridge's former girlfriend, but is aware of the wider context for his employer. Capello sought guidance before selecting Terry for the Sweden friendly and will do so again. He does regard Terry as his best captain but is conscious of not wanting the issue to overshadow preparations for Euro 2012, and of the misgivings of some other squad members. Last week's board decision to wait for the legal process to end was based on the assumption that it would conclude well before the European Championship in Poland and Ukraine, leaving the FA's options more straightforward. That convenient solution to a deeply difficult issue has been removed after Chelsea successfully requested that the courts delay the trial until after the end of the season. Chelsea chief executive Ron Gourlay wrote to District Judge Howard Riddle asking for the delay because it would be inconvenient for the club to release players from training to give evidence. A consequence of Riddle's indulgence of that request is that Chelsea's captain could now lose the England armband. Concerns have been raised over the possibility that standing Terry down could prejudice his case, but yesterday the Crown Prosecution Service said that there was no legal impediment to the FA pursuing its own disciplinary or other procedures ahead of the full hearing. Many professional bodies, including those governing teaching, operate a suspension system for staff who are accused of race-related crimes without affecting the presumption of innocence. It is also thought that by allowing Capello to continue to select Terry for the England squad any negative inference from his loss of the captaincy would be mitigated. Should Bernstein press ahead with the decision to axe Terry it will be the biggest call of his tenure as chairman, but would do much to stamp his authority on the organisation. He will take the decision with one eye on the wider context of the game. The reaction of a number of senior black players and anti-racism campaigners, including Jason Roberts who described the Terry issue as "toxic" this week, demonstrates he will have some influential support. Internationally his credibility could be enhanced too. The FA's strident opposition to racism in other parts of the world, not least in eastern European countries such as Poland and Ukraine, could be undermined if the Terry issue is not addressed. Terry denies a racially aggravated public order offence arising from the altercation with Ferdinand at Loftus Road. In a statement issued by his solicitors on Wednesday he said he was not guilty of the charges and looked forward to the opportunity to clear his name. The offence carries a maximum penalty of a £2,500 fine.