Combating Online Abuse in Sports

Online abuse in sport has become a pervasive global challenge, affecting athletes, teams, officials, and sporting communities across all levels of competition. Despite growing awareness, scholarly attention has largely concentrated on hate speech, leaving other critical forms of abuse underexplored. This open access edited collection addresses this gap by offering a comprehensive examination of the multifaceted nature of online abuse in sport, structured around seven categories identified by Kurt Thomas: toxic content, content leakage, overloading, false reporting, impersonation, surveillance, and lockout and control. The volume comprises eight chapters, beginning with an introductory overview of online abuse in sport, followed by chapters that explore each category in depth. Each chapter defines the forms of abuse within its scope and discusses the key themes, impact, and potential solutions. By expanding the focus beyond traditional notions of online hate, this book provides an integrated and critical assessment of the diverse manifestations of online abuse in sport. It serves as an essential reference for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers seeking to understand, prevent, and respond to online harms in sporting contexts.