Football’s world governing body, FIFA, found that over 55 per cent of players taking part in Euro 2020 and this year’s Africa Cup of Nations received online abuse before, during and after matches.
The study found that homophobic slurs were the most common form of abuse that players received, followed by racism the second most common.
Although the report does not mention any specific names, England internationals Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho all faced considerable abuse after missing spot kicks against Italy when the final of Euro 2020 ended in a penalty shoot-out.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has responded by saying that no forms of discrimination are acceptable in football, while FIFA and FIFPRO are set to launch a moderation service to tackle online abuse ahead of this year’s World Cup in Qatar.
