John Terry has entered a plea of not guilty to a charge of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League match in October.
Terry did not attend the short hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London but his barrister George Carter-Stephenson QC entered the not guilty plea on his behalf and the England skipper will now stand trial for the offence.
The defender, 31, has been charged with racially abusing QPR defender Ferdinand during Chelsea's Premier League defeat at Loftus Road in October.
Footage appearing to show Terry direct racist insults at Ferdinand were uploaded on to the internet following the match resulting in the Metropolitan Police to investigate the incident.
Terry, who has maintained his innocence throughout the investigation, was questioned under caution by police in November before a file was sent to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and he was subsequently charged in December.
District Judge Howard Riddle ordered that the Chelsea player should stand trial in the week beginning July 9, which is after the Euro 2012 Championships, as a number of witnesses will not be able to attend given their international footballing commitments.
If convicted, Terry faces a maximum fine of £2,500 but his punishment from the Football Association would be far worse as the organisation are working hard to stamp out racism in the sport.
"Now that the court has fixed a date for trial, Mr Terry looks forward to the opportunity to clear his name," Terry's solicitors, Grosvenor Law, 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.
"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 such offence.
"Mr Terry has never racially abused another player in his entire career."