FIFA has intensified its efforts to tackle online hate in football, revealing that more than 30,000 abusive posts have been flagged to social media platforms this year and confirming that offenders are now being barred from buying tickets to future tournaments.

Marking the International Day for Tolerance, world football’s governing body reiterated that discrimination has “no place in the game” and highlighted major expansions to its Social Media Protection Service (SMPS) – a system available year-round to all FIFA Member Associations, and to players, teams and officials at FIFA events.

Since its launch in 2022, the SMPS has reported over 65,000 abusive posts for platform review and possible removal, with almost half of those surfacing in 2025 alone.

FIFA confirmed that 11 individuals have been referred to law-enforcement authorities in Argentina, Brazil, France, Poland, Spain, the UK and the United States this year following serious abuse directed at participants in FIFA competitions. One case has also been escalated to Interpol. Relevant Member Associations have been notified to support local disciplinary action.

In its strongest stance yet, FIFA has begun blacklisting individuals responsible for “highly abusive” behaviour, preventing them from purchasing tickets for any future FIFA competitions or events.

Monitoring at major tournaments

The expanded SMPS was deployed at several competitions in 2025, including the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup™ in the United States. All 32 teams, comprising players of 72 nationalities, were covered by proactive monitoring systems designed to identify violent, discriminatory or threatening content.

Across that tournament alone, SMPS analysts monitored 2,401 active accounts across five social-media platforms. Of 5.9 million posts analysed, 179,517 were flagged for review and 20,587 were formally reported to the platforms.

Infantino: “Abuse has no place in our game”

FIFA President Gianni Infantino underlined the governing body’s firm stance.

“Football must be a safe and inclusive space – on the pitch, in the stands and online. Through the Social Media Protection Service, and by deploying advanced technology and human expertise, FIFA is taking decisive action to protect players, coaches, teams and match officials from the serious harm that online abuse causes,” he said.

“Our message is clear: abuse has no place in our game. We will continue working with Member Associations, confederations and law-enforcement bodies to hold offenders accountable.”

What the SMPS does

FIFA’s protection system is designed to shield individuals from racist, discriminatory and threatening messages – and to prevent such posts from spreading to followers, reducing the risk of such behaviour becoming normalised. The service:

• monitors abusive content targeting players, coaches, teams and officials

• reports and helps remove harmful posts

• escalates the most serious abuse to police

• filters and blocks abusive messages before they reach the intended recipient

• gathers data to support disciplinary measures and long-term safeguarding

FIFA says these measures form part of a wider effort to ensure football remains a space defined by respect, safety and inclusion – both on the field and across the digital platforms where the modern game unfolds.