The International Football Association Board (FIFA) said it has stepped up efforts to tackle online abuse targeting players and officials, with a surge in harmful content reported and more offenders being referred to police, Reuters reports.
Marking the International Day for Tolerance, FIFA said its Social Media Protection Service had flagged more than 30,000 offensive posts on platforms since the start of the year, part of more than 65,000 escalated since the tool was launched in 2022.
Eleven individuals in Argentina, Brazil, France, Poland, Spain, Britain and the United States were reported to law enforcement in 2025 for abuses during FIFA competitions, with one case referred to Interpol. The relevant national associations have been notified to allow for follow-up action at local level.
FIFA said it was also blacklisting individuals identified as responsible for “severely abusive behaviour“, preventing them from purchasing tickets for future tournaments or events at the headquarters.
The social media protection service was used for several competitions this year, including the first-ever 32-team Club World Cup in the United States.
During the tournament, the service monitored 2,401 active accounts across five platforms, analysed 5.9 million posts, flagged 179,517 for review and reported 20,587 to the platforms.
“Football should be a safe and inclusive space – on the pitch, in the stands and online“, said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“Our message is clear - abuse has no place in our game and we will continue to work with our member associations, confederations and law enforcement to hold offenders accountable,“ he added.
The Social Media Protection Service uses a combination of technology and human moderation to detect, filter and block racist, discriminatory or threatening messages, while protecting players' followers from exposure to offensive content.