FIFA has announced it has stepped up efforts to tackle online abuse directed at players and officials, reporting a surge in harmful content and referring more offenders to police during the International Day for Tolerance on Sunday, November 16
FIFA stated that hate and discrimination have no place in football, either on the pitch, in the stands, or across social media and as part of its ongoing push for respect and inclusion, it has expanded its Social Media Protection Service (SMPS) to be available to all players, teams and officials at FIFA tournaments, as well as to FIFA Member Associations year-round.
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SMPS, launched in 2022, has flagged more than 65,000 abusive posts to social platforms for review and removed over 30,000 of them in 2024 alone. This year, 11 individuals from Argentina, Brazil, France, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States have been reported to global law-enforcement bodies for online abuse during FIFA competitions, with one case elevated to Interpol. Relevant Member Associations have been briefed to support further local action.
The SMPS has been active at several major competitions this year, including the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup in the United States. Across the tournament’s 32 clubs featuring players from 72 nations, SMPS monitored 2,401 active accounts across five platforms, analysed 5.9 million posts, flagged 179,517 for review, and reported 20,587 to the platforms for action.
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“Football must be a safe and inclusive space on the pitch, in the stands and online,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“Through the FIFA Social Media Protection Service, we are taking decisive action to protect players, coaches, teams and match officials from the serious harm caused by online abuse. Our message is clear: abuse has no place in our game.”
The SMPS is built to shield individuals from racist, discriminatory or threatening online behaviour during major competitions. It also helps protect their followers, reducing the spread and normalisation of harmful content. FIFA is also blacklisting offenders, preventing those responsible for serious online abuse from purchasing tickets for future FIFA tournaments or events.
What the FIFA Social Media Protection Service Does
- Monitors abusive or hateful content targeting players, coaches, teams and match officials
- Reports and helps remove harmful posts from social platforms
- Escalates the worst cases to law enforcement
- Filters and blocks abusive messages before they reach their targets
- Collect data to support disciplinary action and strengthen long-term safeguards against online hate.
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