Middlesbrough to take part in social media blackout as English football switches off Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts
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The FA, Premier League, EFL, FA Women’s Super League, FA Women’s Championship, PFA, LMA, PGMOL, Kick It Out and the FSA have united for a social media boycott from 15.00 this Friday 30 April to 23.59 on Monday 3 May.
The move comes in response to the ongoing and sustained discriminatory abuse received online by players and many others connected to football.
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Hide AdThe blackout has been scheduled to take place across a full fixture programme in the men’s and women’s professional game and will see clubs across the Premier League, EFL, WSL and Women’s Championship switch off their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
The joint statement acknowledged that boycott action from football in isolation will not eradicate online discriminatory abuse fully.
However, football’s regulatory bodies say it will demonstrate that the game is willing to take voluntary and proactive steps in this continued fight.
Trevor Birch, chief executive of the EFL said: “EFL clubs have expressed a clear desire to take a united stand against abhorrent racist, discriminatory, and threatening abuse on social media platforms which we fully support alongside the rest of the football family.
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Hide Ad“While we recognise the value and role social media plays in our game, online abuse will not be tolerated and we will continue to strongly pursue all avenues open to us to affect change.
“The boycott is only part of the work being undertaken in this area but further highlights the need for social media companies to take additional responsibility for the inappropriate and unwelcome behaviour that appears on their platforms.”