Anyone who follows football is bound to have a view on the performance of teams, players, managers, coaches, and referees.
Any offensive social media post is unacceptable. But there’s a difference between a one-off outburst on social media, and a more sustained and personal attack.
I caught up with Elena Dymott, Online Investigations Manager at the Premier League. I wanted to find out how the Premier League supports their players, coaches, managers and teams from online abuse and harassment.
The Premier League’s Social Media Investigative Team
The unit was established in 2019 to monitor social media comments made before, during and after matches on platforms including X and Instagram. Now, the team support both men’s and women’s players and their family members. The unit also supports coaches, referees and other officials within the sport.
During lockdown, when matches were played in empty stadiums, more people took to social media to share their views. It was during this period that Neal Maupay received death threats made against his family following an incident at a Brighton match. He was supported by the Premier League’s investigative team. This ultimately led to a man in Singapore being sentenced to a nine-month probation order.
Automatic Filtering
The League’s unit uses an automatic filtering system. It’s capable of picking up 500 different words, phrases, and emojis. If the system picks up anything that’s potentially abusive, the team then works with the social media platform to have the post removed.
The team will investigate cases using publicly available information such as social media posts, usernames, and linked accounts. This way they can gather the evidence they need to make their case.
The unit has found that much of the abuse and harassment comes from abroad. What’s more, most of the abuse relates to the performance of players, teams, and referees.
The team follows processes to determine risk. They also work closely with clubs and external authorities, as well as collaborating with social media platforms.
Reporting System
In addition to monitoring social media, the unit has a reporting system for players, referees, coaches, and families. Anyone involved in the sport can share any concerns they might have about online abuse, which the team will then investigate. The unit also works closely with the clubs’ player care teams, so that any player subjected to abuse or harassment can get the support they need.
The Premier League’s dedicated team has investigated more than 2,500 cases of online discriminatory abuse targeted at players and others within the game since 2020. The team is committed to investigating cases, and working with law enforcement and football clubs to deliver penalties including stadium bans and legal prosecutions.
What can we learn?
- Abusive posts and comments can be reported to platform providers to have them removed.
- Online abuse is not tolerated at the Premier League and online abuse can lead to conviction.
- Where it doesn’t lead to conviction, there is the possibility for educational sessions or club-led penalties.
- There is support for players and other sports officials to manage their social media presence within the Premier League. The Olympics and Wimbledon offered similar support.
Further Information and Helpful Links
- BBC Radio 4 – “I Received Online Death Treats and The Premier League Caught My Troll”.
- Inside The Premier League Unit Hunting Online Trolls.
- Landmark Ruling – Man Banned From Stadiums Following Online Abuse.
- How The Premier League Investigation Tracked Down an Abuser.