Manchester United midfielder Fred has spoken out against racial abuse after becoming the target of trolling following United’s FA Cup defeat to Leicester on Sunday.
"We cannot accept it. We have to fight it always.” said the Brazilian midfielder.
"We are bigger and better than that. Enough!
"Social media comments filled with hate and, above all, racism: we cannot feed that culture."
The PFA is committed to holding social media networks to account and will continue to demand a safer space for players.
In 2020, a PFA six-week study into online abuse, identified over 3,000 explicitly abusive messages aimed at players. 56% of all the discriminatory abuse identified during the study was racist. This data is powerful in demonstrating the extent of the online abuse, but also highlights a lack of thorough monitoring on behalf of the networks.
Recently the PFA joined the Premier League, EFL, WSL, LMA, PGMOL and Kick It Out in sending a letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook’s founder, chairman and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, amid continuing levels of abuse aimed at footballers on social media. As a collective - players, clubs, and football’s stakeholders- are now working together as part of a joined-up approach to tackling online abuse.
Many footballers have spoken out about how the racial abuse they suffered during their careers impacted them. PFA members affected by racism or discrimination can access our wellbeing support, which is available year-round, by calling our dedicated 24/7 helpline on 07500 000 777.
