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SPORT INTEGRITY AUSTRALIA BACKS ESAFETY RESOURCES TO TACKLE ONLINE ABUSE IN SPORT

SPORT INTEGRITY AUSTRALIA BACKS ESAFETY RESOURCES TO TACKLE ONLINE ABUSE IN SPORT

Sport Integrity Australia is among almost 30 major Australian sporting organisations that helped Australia’s online safety regulator to develop new resources to stem the tide of online abuse.

Launched today by the eSafety Commissioner, eSafety Sport is an online one-stop-shop for administrators, coaches, officials, parents and competitors to learn ways to prevent and manage online abuse in community sport.

“There is no place for abuse in sport and that includes online abuse,” Sport Integrity Australia’s Acting CEO Luke McCann said. “We all have a role in calling out poor behaviour but to do so we must understand the risks and educate ourselves in how we can secure a positive and inclusive future in Australian sport.”     

eSafety Sport includes practical information on how to recognise online abuse, how to deal with online abuse, eight ways to stay safe online and promotional resources for clubs to download and show their support. It also includes tailored advice for different scenarios.

“Whether you’re a participant, volunteer, parent or fan, the eSafety Sport resources are invaluable. They include online safety tips and resources to help us all to #PlayItFairOnline.”

eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said she hopes eSafety Sport will change online conversations for the better.

“Our challenge is to help people understand that being abusive or offensive towards the opposition, the referee or the coach doesn't help the sport you love,” Ms Inman Grant said.

“On the receiving end of every piece of online vitriol is a person: someone’s child, mum, neighbour, friend, uncle or sister. Let's recognise that online abuse is taking an emotional and mental toll on the very people who make sport happen.”

eSafety Sport is a collaboration between eSafety, Sport Integrity Australia the signatories to the Online Safety Statement of Commitment, Play by the Rules, Athletics Australia, Office of Sport NSW and SportWest.

Visit eSafety.gov.au/Sport to access the community sport resources and online safety advice.

PFA and Premier League announce creation of new Football Brain Health Fund

PFA and Premier League announce creation of new Football Brain Health Fund

New fund to assist former players, and their families, who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions

The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) have announced the creation of a new fund, supported by the Premier League, to assist former players, and their families, who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.

An initial amount of £1million will be made available immediately to provide discretionary financial support to former players and their families to help improve their quality of life. The fund will be in place whilst the PFA and Premier League seek to establish a charity involving other football stakeholders as the longer-term vehicle for support.

Former professional footballers who have been members of the PFA and have a diagnosed neurodegenerative disease, will be able to make applications for financial support. These will then be assessed by a newly established, independent panel.

The panel, which includes senior sectoral experts with experience in neurology, nursing and social care, will be led by Steve Jamieson, Chief Executive of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists. He is also a Trustee of Dementia UK and Chair of Dementia UK Admiral Nurses Clinical Committee.

The PFA’s established Brain Health team will continue to act as a central point of contact for former players and their families to access support and advice, including those seeking guidance on how to apply for financial support through the fund.

However, the establishment of the expert panel will ensure that decisions regarding financial assistance are made independently of the football authorities and against informed and established criteria.

The new fund is designed to provide a transparent and streamlined process through which those seeking help can apply for financial assistance, while also ensuring they receive personal contact and advice on broader support which may also be available to them.

'An important step forward'

Maheta Molango, Chief Executive of the PFA, said: “This is an important step forward in the way football provides practical support to former players who develop dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.

“It’s an issue where, in all areas, we continue to believe there needs to be a football-wide responsibility. That includes providing access to financial support for former players and the families who most need it.

“The Premier League deserve credit for the proactive way in which they have approached these discussions. Obviously, we hope that other stakeholders in the game will choose to contribute to the Fund going forward.

“There is much that still needs to be done, but this is a positive development which will provide help to former players and their families, and which demonstrates how football has to work together on this issue.”

Richard Masters, Chief Executive of the Premier League, said: “The welfare and care of players has always been a priority for the Premier League, and we feel it is important to offer our support to this newly established brain health fund.

“The fund builds on our long-standing partnership with the PFA and strengthens our collective support for former players facing health challenges.”

AFC condemns unprovoked attack on Al Husseini Stadium by Israeli forces

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Kuala Lumpur: The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) strongly condemns the unprovoked and horrific attack launched by Israeli forces on players and spectators during the Abu Ammar Cup Final match between Balata FC and Jabal Al Mukabber at the Faisal Al Husseini International Stadium in al-Ram on Thursday night.
 
Tear gas and rubber encased bullets were used by the Israeli forces during the assault, which led to the match being halted as several Palestinian players and fans, including children and women, suffered from breathlessness due to tear gas inhalation and had to be treated with both pitchside and in hospital.
 
The AFC calls for an immediate end to all acts of violence by the Israeli forces against the Palestinian people and stands in firm solidarity with the Palestine Football Association and the Palestinian football community.

CAF takes part in UN Counter Terrorism Programme

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Confederation Africaine de Football (CAF) participated on Tuesday (29 June 2021) in the “Securing of vulnerable targets from terrorist attacks: Challenges and opportunities of major sporting event security management” programme, a part of the second Counter-Terrorism week organized by United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT). 

Warning and fine imposed on Carlisle United for Crowd Control Misconduct

Warning and fine imposed on Carlisle United for Crowd Control Misconduct

An independent Regulatory Commission has imposed a warning and £5,000 fine on Carlisle United for crowd control misconduct at their match on Saturday 20 May 2023 against Bradford City in the EFL League Two. 

The Regulatory Commission suspended £2,000 of the club’s fine pending any further breach of FA Rule E21 before 21 November 2024. 

Carlisle United admitted that they failed to ensure their spectators and/or supporters (and anyone purporting to be supporters or followers) conduct themselves in an orderly fashion and don’t commit any form of pitch incursion. 

FIFPRO presents preliminary trends of upcoming workplace safety report at Council of Europe

FIFPRO presents preliminary trends of upcoming workplace safety report at Council of Europe
  • FIFPRO presented preliminary trends of workplace safety and violence report at fourth meeting of the Committee on Security and Safety at Sports Events

  • Council of Europe’s Saint-Denis Convention is committed to making football matches more safe, secure and welcoming

  • Ninety-five percent of football’s player unions agree violence and abuse is a workplace health and safety issue that needs specific regulation to enforce player protection

FIFPRO presented the preliminary trends of its upcoming Player Workplace Safety: Abuse & Violence report at the Committee on Safety and Security at Sports Events at the Palais de l’Europe in Strasbourg, France.  

The committee is the monitoring body of the Council of Europe’s Saint-Denis Convention, which FIFPRO declared its wish to become an observer, with the core aim of making football matches and other sports events more safe, secure and welcoming. Current observers include the likes of FIFA and UEFA.

The Saint-Denis Convention protects and promotes the human rights of all participants at football matches and other sports events, including the right of players to work in a healthy, safe and secure environment.

FIFPRO Europe President David Terrier and FIFPRO Director of Global Policy & Strategic Relations (Men's Football) Alexander Bielefeld provided a player-centric perspective on workplace health and safety through the lens of football’s player unions.

"Safety in the workplace is a fundamental right that almost every profession enjoys through international conventions and national policies. However, since the Covid-19 pandemic, we have seen a dramatic rise in violence and abuse against players at their place of work: the pitch, the stadium, the changing rooms, the bus ride to the match, the training ground and even online," said Terrier.

"We want to be a partner for stakeholder dialogue to strengthen collective solutions and ensure workplace safety for professional players and all other participants."

Under the international bargaining framework between football’s league and player unions, World Leagues Forum (WLF) and FIFPRO recently agreed to establish three new labour initiatives with a view to strengthen and protect national leagues and playing conditions. One of these committees is focused on violence and safety at football matches.

According to FIFPRO’s preliminary trends of its workplace safety report, players and unions fear that the pitch and the extended working environment are becoming increasingly hostile:

  • 95% of unions agree violence and abuse is a workplace health and safety issue for players and needs specific regulation to design and enforce player protection;

  • 98% of unions believe technology could be better used to reduce the threats posed by violent or abusive fan behaviour. This includes personalised tickets (78%), entrance scanners/detectors (73%) and facial recognition cameras (68%);

  • 71% of unions say that players are worried speaking out could lead to more abuse on social media or risk employment opportunities;

  • 88% of unions believe that abuse and violence has a significant impact on player performance.

"Until now there has been no or little work done to understand the issue from a player-centric occupational health and safety perspective. That is why we have undertaken an extensive global research project, analysing instances of violence towards players in the workplace. Our findings show that football wants action," said Bielefeld.

"While we continue to finalise this work, we hope that it will contribute to a wider debate on the normalisation of abusive behaviour associated with parts of football culture."