FIFA says it has reported more than 30,000 abusive social media posts to various platforms this year as part of its ongoing efforts to combat online harassment targeting players, officials and teams.
In its latest report, world football’s governing body revealed that 11 individuals were referred to law enforcement authorities in 2025, with one case escalated to Interpol.
The identified offenders were located in Argentina, Brazil, France, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, and were traced “following abuse during FIFA competitions”.
Speaking on the International Day for Tolerance, FIFA president Gianni Infantino stressed the need to safeguard all participants in football—both on and off the pitch.
“Football must be a safe and inclusive space—on the pitch, in the stands and online,” Infantino said.
“Through the FIFA Social Media Protection Service (SMPS), and by deploying advanced technology and human expertise, we are taking decisive action to protect players, coaches, teams and match officials from the serious harm that online abuse causes.”
FIFA launched the SMPS in 2022 in partnership with global players’ union Fifpro to detect, block and report abusive content.
The organisation faced criticism earlier this year for appearing to drop anti-racism messaging during the Club World Cup in the US, although the SMPS was fully operational throughout the tournament
According to FIFA, the service monitored 2,401 active accounts across five platforms during the competition, analysing 5.9 million posts. Out of these, 179,517 posts were flagged for review, with 20,587 reported to relevant social media companies.
Infantino reaffirmed Fifa’s commitment to confronting online abuse. “Our message is clear: abuse has no place in our game,” he said.
“We will continue working with member associations, confederations and law enforcement authorities to hold offenders accountable. Such behaviour has no place in football or society, and Fifa is taking all possible steps, including blacklisting individuals from purchasing tickets for Fifa tournaments.”
Since the SMPS was launched in 2022, more than 65,000 abusive posts have been reported to social media platforms.