The United Against Online Abuse Barometer Survey has exposed concerning findings regarding the security risks faced by sporting figures globally. The survey engaged representatives from 90 national federations, and an overwhelming majority, 90%, concurred that sporting figures are currently at risk.
The comprehensive survey aimed to gauge the perceived threats faced by athletes, coaches, and other sports personalities. The results highlight a consensus among national federations on the gravity of the situation, emphasizing the urgent need for enhanced security measures within the sporting community.
The alarming insights revealed in the survey shed light on the vulnerability of sports figures across different regions. The findings underscore the necessity for immediate action to address and mitigate the identified risks, ensuring the safety and well-being of individuals associated with sports.
The FIA and UAOA’s collaborative effort in conducting this survey reflects a commitment to promoting the welfare of the global sporting community. By bringing attention to the shared concerns of national federations, the organizations aim to catalyze initiatives that will safeguard the integrity of sports and protect those involved in various capacities.
As the results unveil a unanimous agreement on the existing security challenges faced by sports figures, the survey serves as a call to action for the international sports community, urging stakeholders to collaborate in implementing robust security protocols. The insights gained from this survey have the potential to drive policy changes and influence the development of protective measures to ensure a safer environment for everyone associated with sports, from athletes to coaches and beyond.
For further details on the alarming security risks revealed in the Barometer Survey, visit the official article at the fia.com.
2023 saw the President’s United Against Online Abuse campaign gain significant momentum. As part of our commitment as a knowledge-led federation, the UAOA team launched a series of workshops dedicated to educating our young athletes on how to define online abuse, protect themselves on platforms and manage changing environments as up-and-coming competitors.
Recognising the pivotal role of young athletes in online abuse discussions, these sessions are integral to the development of young audiences, particularly as several studies demonstrate they may lack sufficient digital literacy training.
In 2023, the team trialled these sessions at the Eurasia Young Driver Academy in Kazakhstan and the Girls on Track events in Italy. The concluding workshop will be hosted in Qatar at the MENA Karting Cup.
In 2024, these workshops will be expanded. To find out how to be part of the movement, FIA Member Clubs can join the online Abuse session at the Baku GA on the 7th of December at 18:30 local time.
Formula 1’s governing body, the FIA, has ramped up its promised campaign to combat the scourge of online abuse by launching a website to further promote the cause.
The advent of social media has come to the point that hate, racism and abuse, by cyber bullies and outright troublemakers, online are at an all-time high, with the various platforms unwilling to root out the menace with the tricky algorithms that control the narrative of all news on the globe.
With anyone able to spew hate and abuse without much consequence, as traffic aka money is king in the internet world, blocking the baddies would mean a massive loss in traffic (aka revenue) one has to imagine. So the news (sports and F1 of course included) narrative is clouded by ulterior motives.
In particular, the feud between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton created huge divisions in the sport, vocalised on social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Before TikTok exploded on the social media scene.
Late last year, the driver with the biggest social media following across all platforms combined, Hamilton described online platforms as increasingly toxic, joining a chorus of drivers at odds with the digital maggots that infest the internet.
Seven-time F1 World Champion, Hamilton said at the time: “Social media is getting more and more toxic as the years go on and we should all come off it, ultimately. Mental health is such a prominent thing right now. So many people are reading the comments, the stuff that people say, and it is hurtful.”
Verstappen agreed, adding: “Social media is a very toxic place. I think it’s just the sport is more popular so there are more people watching, so more people are writing. I think it’s just that.
“It’s not great that they are allowed to write these kinds of things so I hope we can come up with a kind of algorithm that stops people from being keyboard warriors because these kinds of people… they will never come up to you and say these things in front of your face
“Why? Because they’re sitting in front of their desk or whatever at home, being upset, being frustrated, and they can write whatever they like because the platform allows them to. Yeah, that can be really damaging and hurtful to some people and it’s not how it should be,” lamented Verstappen, who is en route to his third successive F1 world title.
Most F1 drivers and many race officials have been subject to anything ranging from unacceptable abuse to death wishes and the like. Terrible stuff that needs addressing. Step up the FIA with more ammunition for the fight.
In December last year, FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem unleashed a war cry of sorts when he told reporters: “I’m going to fight it with all the power that I have. We are getting the support. One of our stewards from Spain was abused on social media – that cannot be accepted.
“If we allow this to happen, it’s only a matter of time [until] the damage to our sport will be beyond repair,”
warned Ben Sulayem.
Ahead of the website launch, the President added:
“The FIA is fully committed to preserving the sporting environment as a welcoming and respectful community for all. This campaign underscores our determination to combat hate speech and online harassment on digital platforms and we invite our coalition partners to join us in this movement.”
The FIA, in partnership with fellow sporting bodies, makes history with survey dedicated to studying online abuse in sports
DUBAI: The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile has launched its inaugural barometer under the auspices of the United Against Online Abuse campaign, a strategic initiative designed to address the impact of online abuse against athletes, officials, volunteers, and others involved in the sport.
“The launch of the first-ever barometer survey in to online abuse is an important milestone in the FIA’s United Against Online Abuse campaign,”
said FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem.
“This latest research initiative will yield findings from across the sporting landscape to inform our strategic approach. Only through a collaborative effort will we achieve a measure of success in combatting this scourge on our sport. Everyone in sport, from the media, teams, competitors and fans has a role to play.”
The first edition survey is designed to provide an assessment of the extent of online abuse against athletes, competitors, officials, and participants aligned to over 70 international sporting bodies. The project team will be headed by Prof. David Hassan, a leading researcher in sports management and policy, for over two decades.
The explosion in popularity of esports is forcing parents and teachers to rethink their resistance to video games and welcome them into the classroom.
For decades gaming was a source of frustration for parents, viewed as an unwelcome distraction for teenagers who spend too much time glued to a screen.
The esports juggernaut has burst into popular culture and gained mainstream acceptance.
Investment bank Goldman Sachs predicts esports’ viewership will overtake the NFL and analysis from Deloitte found “fabled riches” await investors and advertisers that tap into its young, affluent audience.
Online gaming is so ubiquitous that teachers have given up trying to fight it and are now actively encouraging esports through school-based competition.
Many Australian schools include esports as a co-curricular activity where students practice, tryout for the team and travel to live, in-person competitions.
About 50,000 students from more than 300 schools took part in the Fuse Cup, an international esports competition for children.
The country’s top 60 players representing 25 schools from five different states recently competed in the national finals on the Gold Coast.
The competition’s founder Dan Martinez said it was a great way for like-minded young people to make friends and an opportunity to educate them on healthy gaming habits.
“Esports is embedded in schools across Australia just like any other traditional sport like cricket or netball or basketball”
Mr Martinez said.
Gianni Infantino has attended the Formula One Qatar Grand Prix where he held talks with the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) President Mohammed Ben Sulayem about the fight against online abuse. The two presidents previously met at the Monaco Grand Prix in May, where they also discussed the issue.
“It was great to be back in Qatar for the Formula One Grand Prix. This beautiful country brings back wonderful memories from the FIFA World Cup in 2022 which brought the world together in celebration,” the FIFA President said. “I also met with FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem and continued our conversation about how we can work together to combat online abuse in sport.”
“I also met with FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem and continued our conversation about how we can work together to combat online abuse in sport.”
Last year, FIFA and FIFPRO — the worldwide organisation representing players – jointly established the Social Media Protection Service (SMPS) to defend teams and players from online abuse at FIFA tournaments. The service was implemented at both the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ and the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023™ as well as the FIFA Club World Cup Morocco 2022™ and the FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023™.
The SMPS proactively monitors the social media accounts of every participating team and player, as well as several coaches and officials, looking for abusive, discriminatory and threatening language. In addition, every participant is offered access to a moderation tool which instantly and automatically hides abusive and offensive comments from their profiles, so that the comments are never seen by the player or team they were aimed at, nor the many millions of social media users who follow them.
Meanwhile, FIA has launched the United Against Online Abuse campaign – a collaborative mission between national governments, regulatory institutions and fellow sporting bodies – with the objective of building a global coalition within the sport ecosystem.
The race took place at the Lusail International Circuit, a few kilometres from the Lusail Stadium which hosted matches at last year’s FIFA World Cup including the Final between Argentina and France.
The FIA, in partnership with fellow sporting bodies, makes history with the first of its kind survey dedicated to studying online abuse in sport.
Survey findings will support the UAOA campaign by providing an evidential base to lobby key stakeholders for action, advocacy, and investment.
The FIA today launches the inaugural barometer under the auspices of the United Against Online Abuse campaign – a strategic initiative designed to address the impact of online abuse against athletes, officials, volunteers, and others involved in the sport.
The first edition survey, presented as a barometer, is designed to provide an assessment of the extent of online abuse against athletes, competitors, officials and participants aligned to over 70 international sporting bodies. The project team will be headed by Professor David Hassan, a leading researcher in sports management and policy, for over two decades.
Both parties discussed the importance of confronting the issue of online abuse and the need for action to increase prevention from cyber-harassment in sport.
During the meeting, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra gave her support to the FIA’s “United Against Online Abuse” charter. She added that the FIA’s initiative is compatible with the actions of the French government to fight against the online harassment of athletes and officials.
The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) today announces the signing of a Charter for collaboration with the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) as part of the global coalition to counter online abuse in sport.
The signing between FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem and his counterpart at FIM, Jorge Viegas, took place at the Francorchamps circuit ahead of the Belgian Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Under this pledge, the FIA and FIM will contribute to the fight against online hate speech in sport which is a pressing challenge for society by adopting several targets.
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem announces the launch of six fully-funded scholarships as the United Against Online Abuse campaign continues to gather momentum.
The scholarships will invite researchers worldwide to collaborate remotely against the global scourge of online hate speech in sport whilst earning a Master’s by Research degree title. The programs fall under the auspices of the FIA University and are backed by the FIA Foundation.
The announcement comes on the United Nations Day for Countering Hate speech and has been formally presented to delegates at the FIA Conference in Cordoba June 2023.