One in five players were the target of online abuse during the 2023 Women's World Cup in New Zealand and Australia, as a package of social media protection tools hid nearly 117,000 comments.
Developed by the world governing body, with players' union FIFPRO, and launched at the 2022 Men's World Cup, the Social Media Protection Service (SMPS) was offered to teams at the women's finals.
The tool, which has been used at eight FIFA tournaments in the last 12 months, monitors and moderates hate speech on social media, hiding harmful content from the players.
Players at this year's Women's World Cup were 29 pecent more likely to be targeted with online abuse, compared with players at last year's men's finals in Qatar, said FIFA.
About 5.1 million posts and comments in 35 different languages were analysed for abusive content, protecting 697 players and coaches using 2111 accounts across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X and YouTube.
More than 150 female players received targeted discriminatory, abusive or threatening messages during the Australia and New Zealand tournament, where two teams - the United States and Argentina - stood out as key targets.
Homophobic, sexual and sexist abuse accounted for almost 50 percent of detected abusive messages, and 116,800 comments were hidden across Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, as junk, spam, discriminatory, abusive or threatening.
The final, which saw Spain beat European Champions England 1-0, generated the largest spike of abusive content across the tournament, with more than 6500 comments hidden by SMPS.
"There can be no place on social media for those who abuse or threaten anyone, be that in FIFA tournaments or elsewhere," said FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
FIFPRO president David Aganzo added: "The abuse that persists online impacts football players all over the world and it cannot be ignored.
"This toxic online environment is a risky place to be in for players, and it affects their mental health and wellbeing. Football has a responsibility to protect the players around their workspace."
The SMPS tool, which was also used at the 2023 U17 World Cup in Indonesia in November and December, uses artificial intelligence to protect the players and also stops their followers being exposed to hate speech.
Reuters
