A recent report commissioned by FIFA has shed light on the alarming increase in online abuse targeting players during the England vs France World Cup quarter-final match. The study, conducted during last year’s tournament in November and December, uncovered a staggering 19,000 abusive posts across various social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube. Additionally, automated algorithms on these platforms flagged almost 290,000 comments, which were subsequently hidden from public view.
Coinciding with the report’s release on June 18, the United Nations International Day for Countering Hate Speech, it revealed that over 20 million posts and comments were analyzed across the five platforms. The findings identified 19,636 instances of inflammatory content, promptly reported to the respective social media companies. Twitter received the highest number of reports, accounting for over 13,000, followed by Instagram with approximately 5,300.
FIFA’s comprehensive analysis of the data unveiled several distressing trends. Out of the monitored hateful posts, 13% were related to sexism, 17% to sexual comments, 12% to homophobia, and 26% to general abuse. Moreover, the report verified the identities of over 300 individuals responsible for posting discriminatory, abusive, or threatening content during the tournament.
FIFA has shared this information with the relevant authorities in their respective countries. Notably, during the England vs France match, 38% of inflammatory comments originated from Europe, while 36% came from South America.
Prior to the World Cup, FIFA collaborated with FIFPRO, the global players’ union, to establish the Social Media Protection Service (SMPS). This initiative offered players a comprehensive set of tools designed to safeguard their online well-being during FIFA-branded tournaments. The SMPS successfully removed a total of 286,895 comments from players’ social media accounts throughout the World Cup, shielding both participants and their followers from harmful content.
The same proactive approach will be adopted during the upcoming Women’s World Cup, where all participating countries and players will have the opportunity to utilize the SMPS throughout the tournament held in Australia and New Zealand.
Commenting on the report’s findings, FIFA President Gianni Infantino emphasized the gravity of discrimination as a criminal offense. He highlighted the significance of identifying the perpetrators and reporting them to the appropriate authorities for appropriate legal action. Infantino also called upon social media platforms to acknowledge their responsibilities and actively support FIFA in combatting all forms of discrimination. FIFA’s stance on this matter is unequivocal: discrimination will not be tolerated, and resolute action must be taken to eradicate it from the beautiful game.
