Soccer:England captain John Terry will not face trial for allegedly racially abusing Anton Ferdinand until after the Euro 2012 championships. The Chelsea defender did not attend the first hearing in the case at in London today but his barrister entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

Terry, 31, is accused of a racially-aggravated public order offence over video footage which appears to show him shout an offensive comment at QPR defender Ferdinand during a Barclays Premier League match in October.

District Judge Howard Riddle ordered that he should stand trial in the week beginning July 9th after hearing that a number of other Chelsea players would not be able to appear as witnesses until the end of the football season.

The trial, which could last up to five days, will take place after the Euro 2012 tournament when Terry is expected to line up at the heart of England's defence alongside Ferdinand's brother, Rio.

"Now that the court has fixed a date for trial, Mr Terry looks forward to the opportunity to clear his name," the player's legal firm Grosvenor Law LLP said in a statement.

"Mr Terry has consistently and resolutely maintained that his well publicised remarks were made in the belief that he was being accused of racist abuse by Mr Ferdinand," it added. "Mr Terry was shocked and disgusted by that accusation at the time. Mr Terry denies making any racist statement and will establish in court that he is not guilty of any such offence.

Mr Terry has never racially abused another player in his entire career."

In December, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) ordered Terry to be prosecuted for a "racially aggravated public order offence" over comments allegedly made to Ferdinand in an on-field exchange during Chelsea's 1-0 defeat by

Queens Park Rangers.

The CPS took action after video of the incident was posted on the internet and a member of the public complained that Terry had used allegedly racist language when speaking to Ferdinand.Terry could be fined up to £2,500 convicted.