The Football Association is set to remove the England captaincy from John Terry, the BBC has learned.
FA chairman David Bernstein has spoken to board members and the majority view is Terry should be stood down. He would still be available for selection for the national team.
It would be the second time Terry, 31, has been stripped of the captaincy.
He is due to stand trial in July over racial abuse allegations after an incident with QPR's Anton Ferdinand.
The Chelsea defender has entered a plea of not guilty to the charge.
Bernstein is expected to speak to England manager Fabio Capello about the issue on Friday. An official announcement could be made before the weekend.
Capello has until now maintained the position that Terry is innocent until proven guilty and that he should be free to select him as his captain until his trial is over.
There is some nervousness among board members as to how the Italian will react, with some fearing he will see it as undue interference in team affairs.
But there is now an acceptance among the FA hierarchy that the matter should be taken out of his hands.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/16866149