Kick It Out received 1,332 reports in the 2023/24 season, the highest number ever received by the anti-discrimination and inclusion charity in a single season.
The organisation has also received more player-specific discriminatory reports across professional sport than ever before, with reports of abuse targeting players increasing by 43 per cent (from 277 to 395).
Incorporating reports from the professional game, grassroots and social media, the new figures represent a 32 per cent increase on the previous year and are more than double the 601 achieved in the 2021/22 season.
Encouragingly, for the fifth consecutive season, Kick It Out’s report rate per incident has increased, indicating that fans are becoming less tolerant of discriminatory abuse. The charity received 1.5 reports per incident last season, rising to 1.38 the following season.
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Reports of gender discrimination and misogyny continue to rise, rising by 44 per cent (from 80 to 115), following a huge increase in the 2022/23 season.
Last season there were 12 reports of gender-discriminatory abuse against eight different WSL players, the highest number of reports from professional female players received by Kick It Out in a single season.
2022/23 sees a 43.8% increase in sexist and misogynistic reports compared to the previous season
There has been a decrease in reports of anti-gay chanting for the second consecutive season, from 43 in the 21/22 season to 17 this year. This follows changes to the law and updates to FA guidance which see chanting certain slogans become a criminal offence.
The data released also revealed:
- Reports of discrimination at youth level (Under 18) increased by 22 per cent (from 111 to 143), including a seven-fold increase in abuse in Under 12 football (from 4 to 25).
- There has been a rise in incidents of abuse towards officials in grassroots football, with such reports doubling compared to last season.
- Homophobic reports received from grassroots (24 per cent drop) and professional sport (9 per cent drop) have decreased. However, LGBTQ+ hate online has risen sharply, with reports rising from 43 to 65. Reports of transphobia online have also increased by 183 per cent.
- A 35 per cent increase in anti-disability insults and language.
Reports of gender discrimination and misogyny continue to rise following a massive increase in the 2022/23 season
Kick It Out chairman Sanjay Bhandari said: “These figures show the severity of the problem of discrimination in football, with reports received by Kick It Out having more than doubled in the last two seasons.”
“It is extremely concerning to see how rapidly reports are increasing. However, we believe this increase is also due to fans having a lower tolerance for discrimination and a greater awareness of reporting processes.”
Racism-related cases increased by more than 50% in 2023/24 compared to 2022/23
“Encouragingly, in recent years we have seen harsher penalties for racist abuse, including the harshest ever sentence given to a football fan found guilty of racist abuse during a football match earlier this season.
“However, we now need better coordination between football authorities and stakeholders to ensure positive outcomes for victims of abuse across different areas of the game, particularly on social media, where too much discriminatory abuse still goes unchallenged.”
Sky Sports News has contacted X, Meta and Google for comment on the figures relating to their platforms.
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Kick It Out is football’s equality and inclusion organisation – working across the football, educational and community sectors to challenge discrimination, encourage inclusive practices and campaign for positive change.
www.kickitout.org
