Sport and Discrimination Conference Opens with Panel on Online Harm in Sport

The Sport and Discrimination Conference, hosted by the Institute for Business & Society at Dublin City University, opened with a keynote panel exploring the growing challenge of online harm in sport and the ways it can be addressed across sporting and digital environments.

Chaired by Anne-Marie Batson, the panel brought together experts from research and industry to discuss the scale of online abuse affecting athletes, journalists and fans. Panellists included Dr Gary Sinclair (DCU Business School), Dr Usva Friman (Tampere University) and Jonathan Sebire (Signify AI).

Opening the discussion, Batson highlighted how sport’s global reach and passionate fan cultures have increasingly moved into digital spaces. While platforms such as social media and gaming environments have created new opportunities for connection and engagement, they have also amplified harassment, abuse and discrimination directed at athletes, journalists and other stakeholders in sport.

Online abuse now “part of the job”

A recurring theme throughout the discussion was the normalisation of online abuse in sport. Dr Gary Sinclair explained that interviews with athletes and sports journalists show that many now consider harassment on social media to be an unavoidable aspect of their professional lives.

“Players and journalists increasingly internalise this abuse as part of the job,” he noted. “But when we start to dig into the data and the lived experiences, the scale and the impact of it becomes clear.”

Sinclair highlighted how abuse affects not only individuals but also the wider sporting ecosystem. Journalists, for example, may choose not to cover certain topics because of the anticipated backlash online. In some cases, coordinated attacks can affect careers, mental wellbeing and the willingness of people to participate in public debate around sport.

Toxicity and exclusion in esports

Dr Usva Friman brought an esports perspective to the conversation, outlining how online gaming environments can be particularly hostile for women and other marginalised groups.

Drawing on interviews with esports players and teams, Friman described how many female players experience constant harassment in gaming environments, including sexism and other forms of abuse. The level of toxicity is so widespread that many players adopt strategies to avoid detection, such as using gender-neutral usernames, avoiding voice chat or even using voice-changing technology.

“These environments are often described by players as toxic,” she explained. “For some women, it is simply not a place where they feel they belong.”

Friman also highlighted how these barriers can prevent players from progressing to elite levels in competitive gaming, limiting participation and reinforcing inequality within esports.

Industry monitoring and intervention

Jonathan Sebire provided an industry perspective, outlining how organisations are increasingly working to detect and respond to abuse directed at athletes and sporting organisations.

His organisation works with sports bodies, clubs and federations to proactively monitor online threats and harassment, identifying harmful messages and, in severe cases, working with social media platforms or law enforcement to intervene.

Sebire also highlighted the role of sports betting in amplifying abuse, particularly when gamblers target athletes after losing bets. While gambling is not the sole cause of harassment, he suggested it can act as an accelerator, increasing the intensity and frequency of online abuse directed at players.

Despite the scale of the challenge, Sebire noted that sports organisations are beginning to take the issue more seriously by integrating online abuse monitoring into athlete welfare and performance programmes.

Balancing regulation and digital freedom

The panel also addressed ongoing debates around how social media platforms should respond to online abuse.

While some policymakers have proposed linking social media accounts to verified identification as a way to reduce anonymity and harassment, the panel noted that such approaches raise complex questions around privacy, access and digital rights.

Speakers also discussed the responsibility of technology companies in designing safer platforms, noting that many digital environments are built primarily to maximise engagement rather than minimise harm.

Growing momentum for change

Despite the challenges outlined during the discussion, the panel concluded on a cautiously optimistic note. Researchers and practitioners reported growing engagement from sports organisations, policymakers and technology platforms seeking to address online abuse in sport.

There is also increasing collaboration between academics, sports governing bodies and technology companies to better understand the scale of the problem and develop practical responses.

As the conference continues, discussions will further explore issues of discrimination, inequality and inclusion across sport, bringing together scholars from around the world to share research and develop solutions to some of sport’s most pressing social challenges.