Non-league clubs show support for social media boycott

Non-league clubs from across the country have thrown their support behind a boycott of social media in response to the ongoing discriminatory abuse received online by players and other key figures in the game.

Several key organisations from within the game released a joint statement on Saturday confirming that they will hold a boycott of all social media platforms between 3pm on Friday 30th April and Monday 3rd May.

The FA, Premier League, EFL, PFA, LMA, PGMOL, Kick It Out, Women in Football and the FSA have scheduled the boycott to coincide with one of the busiest weekends of the season.

Clubs across the Premier League, EFL, Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship will mute their social media accounts and a number of clubs from all levels of the non-league game have confirmed that they will follow the same course of action.

The National League also showed their support in a tweet released on Sunday afternoon.

A statement released on the FA website read: “As a collective, the game recognises the considerable reach and value of social media to our sport. The connectivity and access to supporters who are at the heart of football remains vital.

“However, the boycott shows English football coming together to emphasise that social media companies must do more to eradicate online hate, while highlighting the importance of educating people in the ongoing fight against discrimination.

“In our letter of February 2021, English football outlined its requests of social media companies, urging filtering, blocking and swift takedowns of offensive posts, an improved verification process and re-registration prevention, plus active assistance for law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute originators of illegal content.

“While some progress has been made, we reiterate those requests today in an effort to stem the relentless flow of discriminatory messages and ensure that there are real-life consequences for purveyors of online abuse across all platforms.

“Boycott action from football in isolation will, of course, not eradicate the scourge of online discriminatory abuse, but it will demonstrate that the game is willing to take voluntary and proactive steps in this continued fight.

“Finally, while football takes a stand, we urge the UK Government to ensure its Online Safety Bill will bring in strong legislation to make social media companies more accountable for what happens on their platforms, as discussed at the DCMS Online Abuse roundtable earlier this week.

“Edleen John, our director of international relations, corporate affairs and co-partner for equality, diversity and inclusion, said: “It’s simply unacceptable that people across English football and society continue to be subjected to discriminatory abuse online on a daily basis, with no real-world consequences for perpetrators.

“This needs to change quickly, and we continue to urge social media companies to act now to address this. We will not stop talking about this issue and will continue to work with government in ensuring that the Online Safety Bill gives sufficient regulatory and supervisory powers to Ofcom. Social media companies need to be held accountable if they continue to fall short of their moral and social responsibilities to address this endemic problem.”

“We have recently seen how powerful it can be when everybody is united for the good of the English game. We are calling on organisations and individuals across the game to join us in a temporary boycott of these social media platforms, to show solidarity and unite in the message that English football will not tolerate discrimination in any form.”