The European Football Union UEFA had 4,656 posts with offensive, racist or homophobic content on social media reviewed during the Euro group stage. According to UEFA, posts on platforms such as X, Instagram or TikTok that were directed against players, coaches, officials and other participants in the Euro were and are being monitored.
UEFA said that 71 percent of the abusive posts were pursued by the platforms themselves. Around 94 percent of the marked posts contained general insults, a further 4.5 percent contained racist and 1.5 percent homophobic abuse.
According to UEFA, in most cases, namely 74 percent, the players were insulted. 15 percent of the messages examined were directed against coaches, 7 percent against teams and around 4 percent against referees. According to UEFA, the national teams most affected were the Belgian, Croatian, Ukrainian and Dutch teams.
The content is being reviewed as part of a program created by UEFA, which was used for the first time at the 2022 Women’s European Championship. According to UEFA, the national associations are informed about the abusive posts on the Internet after each game. They are therefore free to take criminal action against the authors. The association is reportedly reviewing 622 social media platforms and accounts of people involved in the tournament.
Investigations into insults at games
Insulting and racist incidents have recently increased not only on the internet, but also on football pitches and at fan events. For example, since the start of the European Championships, there have been increasing incidents involving the xenophobic reinterpretation of the party hit Love always reported.
In addition, UEFA has launched investigations into Albanian and Croatian fans for allegedly shouting anti-Serbian slogans. The two football associations have already been fined €10,000 each by UEFA for “provocative” messages from fans. A possible racist incident is also being investigated.
UEFA is also investigating Albanian national player Mirlind Daku, who is said to have behaved inappropriately. Since the start of the European Championship, there have been repeated reports of offensive, racist and violent incidents between fans and also against bystanders.
Insults in football
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The European Football Union UEFA had 4,656 posts with offensive, racist or homophobic content on social media reviewed during the Euro group stage. According to UEFA, posts on platforms such as X, Instagram or TikTok that were directed against players, coaches, officials and other participants in the Euro were and are being monitored.
UEFA said that 71 percent of the abusive posts were pursued by the platforms themselves. Around 94 percent of the marked posts contained general insults, a further 4.5 percent contained racist and 1.5 percent homophobic abuse.
