The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the global governing body for motor sport and the federation for mobility organisations worldwide, and Dublin City University (DCU) announce the publication of “Combating Online Abuse in Sports: The Game Beyond the Screen”.
- FIA-supported research expands the conversation beyond online hate to reveal seven distinct forms of digital abuse in sport
- Identified threats range from toxic content and coordinated pile-ons to deepfakes, data leaks, surveillance and account takeovers
- Open-access book brings together expertise across sport, law, cybersecurity, governance and digital business
Supported by the FIA Foundation and FIA as part of its United Against Online Abuse initiative, and published by Palgrave Macmillan, the new open-access book challenges the idea that online abuse in sport begins and ends with hateful comments.
Bringing together experts from sport, sociology, media, law, cybersecurity, governance and digital business, it explores seven distinct forms of online abuse and examines how they affect a range of stakeholders including athletes, officials, journalists, organisations and the wider sporting community. The book was edited by Professor Theo Lynn (Dublin City University), Dr. Gary Sinclair (Dublin City University), Dr. Katie Liston (Ulster University) and Professor David Hassan (Ulster University).
The seven forms, most of which go unreported and unrecognised, are:
- Toxic content: sustained abuse, threats and targeted pile-ons.
- Content leakage: private images, medical records and personal data released without consent.
- Overloading: coordinated campaigns that overwhelm accounts, inboxes, phone or other digital channels.
- False reporting: malicious complaints or mass-reporting designed to damage reputations, disrupt performance and/or careers, or silence targets.
- Digital impersonation: fake profiles, account hijacking, deepfakes and other attempts to assume or manipulate someone’s identity.
- Surveillance: intrusive monitoring of movements, training patterns, communications, data or private life.
- Lockout and control: attacks or restrictions that remove a target’s access to, or control over, their digital identity and communications.
A central message runs throughout the book: responsibility for tackling online abuse cannot simply be placed on athletes and other targets to become more “resilient”. Meaningful progress requires coordinated action, stronger safeguarding, better digital security, greater platform governance and accountability, and coordinated action across sport, government, technology, and civil society.
The book is fully open access, ensuring it can be read, shared and used freely by athletes, sporting organisations, governing bodies, policymakers, platforms and researchers worldwide.
H.E. Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President of the FIA, said: “The FIA is committed to creating a safer digital environment for everyone in sport. This book, supported through our United Against Online Abuse campaign, provides the evidence base and practical framework that athletes, governing bodies and policymakers need to tackle online abuse in all its forms.”
Professor Theo Lynn, Lead Editor and Executive Dean at DCU Business School, said:
“For too long, online abuse in sport has been treated as a problem of hateful comments. It is much bigger than that. Athletes can face deepfakes, leaked personal data, coordinated attacks, surveillance and even the loss of control of their own digital identity. If we cannot recognise these harms, we cannot tackle them. This book gives sport a common language for understanding the threat and a practical basis for action. By making it open access, we want that knowledge in the hands of everyone who can help make sport safer.”
ENDS
For media enquiries please contact Maria Zander, Corporate Communications Manager: mzander@fia.com
About United Against Online Abuse (UAOA)
Founded in 2023 by H.E. Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President of the FIA, the United Against Online Abuse (UAOA) coalition is an award-winning global initiative dedicated to combatting online abuse in sport through research, policy advocacy, and collaborative action. UAOA is endorsed by more than 75 governments, sports, academic institutions and technology organisations, and is supported by the FIA Foundation and co-funded by the European Union.
About the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA)
The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) is the governing body for world motor sport and the federation for mobility organisations globally. It is a non-profit organisation committed to driving innovation and championing safety, sustainability and equality across motor sport and mobility.
Founded in 1904, with offices in Paris, London and Geneva, the FIA brings together 246 Member Organisations across five continents, representing millions of road users, motor sport professionals and volunteers. It develops and enforces regulations for motor sport, including six FIA World Championships, to ensure worldwide competitions are safe and fair for all.
