EFL wants Government to hold social media companies to account over online abuse

The English Football League will challenge the new Prime Minister to ensure the Government holds social media companies to account over online abuse.

Crystal Palace defender Joachim Andersen turned to police after he was bombarded with death threats and vitriol following his involvement in the incident which saw Darwin Nunez sent off in Monday’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool.

David McArdle, who oversees inclusion and anti-discrimination initiatives for the EFL, agreed rooting out bad behaviour is paramount in ensuring football remains a welcoming space for fans and players alike.

“We at the outset of when George Floyd was murdered and all that happened, we set out and said ‘that’s discrimination’,” he said.

“It’s not racism, it’s not LGBTQ+, it’s not misogyny, it’s not ableism, it’s discrimination, and we have had that voice across all different aspects of the game.

“We’ve been one of the more vocal football organisations to say if you believe that’s what you want to do, you’re not welcome. We do not want you here. And our clubs have really taken on that stance and that leadership that we have shown very early on to start to root it out of their game.

“Social media has its own challenges, but through our systems of how we monitor that, how we bring 72 clubs together to speak to the social media companies at various points of the season, we are trying to use our voice and our influence as much as we can to show these social media companies that the level of challenge that our clubs are facing, to really put that onto them, we work with our clubs, we work with our players to try and ensure that they are best supported as much as we can.

“We need to ensure that any point that comes through Government legislation, whatever that