Reports of abuse across football hit ‘alarming’ record number

Kick It Out has received an “alarming” and record number of reports of discriminatory behaviour in football last season – almost two-thirds higher than for the previous year.

A 65.1 per cent rise in reports from across professional and grassroots football and social media included a 279 per cent increase in online abuse and a 400 per cent rise in reports of sexism and misogyny.

The anti-discrimination body received 1,007 reports as the number went up for a fourth consecutive year – but believes that at least shows the benefit that fans are less likely to turn a blind eye to abuse.

Kick It Out said almost half the reports related to racism while there has been a major spike in online abuse towards female players and fans. There were also more reports of both Islamophobia and sectarian chanting.

“Discrimination is still a serious issue within the game,” concluded Kick It Out.

Their CEO Tony Burnett said: “The significant increase in reports across the game is alarming. Behind each of these statistics, is somebody who has sadly experienced discrimination.

“We call upon fans, clubs, leagues and governing bodies to help us with this cause, and we are encouraged that the number of reports per incident continues to increase, suggesting that people are becoming less tolerant of discriminatory behaviour and more likely to report abuse when they see it.

“Our figures provide a snapshot of what is happening across the game, but we still don’t know the full picture because clubs, leagues and governing bodies aren’t currently mandated to share their reporting data.

“This underscores why football urgently needs a centralised reporting mechanism to collate and monitor reports. Only once that happens can we understand the full extent of the problem within football and tackle it with the full force of the sport.”