Led by English Football and the Premier League clubs, many sporting organisations are standing united against social media abuse and support the social media boycott this weekend.

The coalition includes the ITF, IMMAF Football Association, Premier League and EFL, the boycott is joined also by the FA Women’s Super League, FA Women’s Championship, The Scottish Football Association, Scottish Professional Football League, Professional Footballers’ Association, League Managers Association, PGMOL, Kick It Out, Women in Football, Football Supporters’ Association, among others.

The social media boycott is taking place today from 15:00 BST on Friday 30 April to 23:59 BST on Monday 3 May.

ITF President, David Haggerty said: “Time and again we see the devastating impact that online abuse, threats and discriminatory language has on professional athletes, coaches and officials, not only in tennis but across sport. The level of abuse individuals are forced to endure is completely unacceptable, which is why we are joining this boycott and calling on social media companies to act now to protect individuals who are merely doing their jobs.”

ITIA CEO, Jonny Gray said, “We see significant numbers of messages from disgruntled gamblers, corruptors and others that get sent to players and they are shocking. Many contain death threats that cause real distress and long-term harm. Alongside our colleagues in the sport, we do our best to support and advise those who receive these messages, but social media companies could and should do more. They have a responsibility to their users to ensure that their platforms are not used as a tool to abuse or threaten anyone in tennis – or indeed, any sport.”

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin gave his unequivocal backing to the initiative, saying that action needs to be taken to stop the spread of hate and abuse online directed at footballers and those involved with the game.

“There have been abuses both on the pitch and on social media. This is unacceptable and needs to be stopped, with the help of the public and legislative authorities and the social media giants. Allowing a culture of hatred to grow with impunity is dangerous, very dangerous, not only for football, but for society as a whole.

“This is why we are supporting this initiative. It is time for football to take a stand and I have been impressed with the solidarity shown by the players, clubs and stakeholders.

“I urge everyone – players, clubs and national associations – to lodge formal complaints whenever players, coaches, referees or officials are victims of unacceptable tweets or messages. We’ve had enough of these cowards who hide behind their anonymity to spew out their noxious ideologies.”

As lockdowns continue in Japan with less than three months to go until the opening of the Games, organisers have come together to reassure participants and the public of the safety of the Tokyo event.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020), the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Government of Japan today agreed on the following measures to ensure the safe organisation of the Games.

The five parties will continue to deploy all possible COVID-19 countermeasures and place the highest priority on safety for the sake of all participants, including the athletes, and the Japanese public who will be playing host to the Games.

1. The COVID-19 countermeasures included in the Playbooks (rulebooks) published in February this year have since been reviewed and significantly updated in order to address the emergence of new mutant coronavirus strains and the evolving situation of the pandemic. New rules that have to be observed by everyone involved in the Games during their stay in Japan have been incorporated, and others updated, so that the Tokyo 2020 Games can be held safely. The most important measures, which were agreed by all the five parties today, appear in the second edition of the Playbooks and are as follows:

• All participants are required to take two COVID-19 tests before their flight to Japan.
• In principle, athletes and all those in close proximity with athletes will be tested daily to minimise the risk of undetected positive cases that could transmit the virus. The dates and times will be set in line with the sports events and schedule.
• All other Games participants will be tested daily for three days after their arrival. After the first three days and throughout their stay, they will be tested regularly, based on the operational nature of their role and level of contact with athletes.
• All Games participants must, in principle, only follow the activities they have outlined in their activity plan. They must minimise contact within one metre of Games participants who have already been in Japan for more than 14 days, and Japanese residents.
• All Games participants must, in principle, exclusively use dedicated Games vehicles, and they are not allowed to use public transport.
• All Games participants must, in principle, eat only in the limited locations where COVID-19 countermeasures are in place, including catering facilities at Games venues, their accommodation’s restaurant, and their rooms, using room service or food delivery.
• Close contacts are defined as those who have prolonged contact (for 15 minutes or more) with a person who has a confirmed positive COVID-19 test, within one metre, without wearing a face mask. This is particularly applicable when such contact happens in enclosed spaces such as hotel rooms or vehicles. Cases will be confirmed by the Japanese health authorities.

The Playbooks have been developed based on science, benefiting from learnings gathered during the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to implementing the most effective tools being used throughout society, such as mask wearing, personal hygiene and physical distancing, they also draw upon the experience of hundreds of sports events that have taken place across the world during the pandemic, which have been held safely, with minimal risk to participants and the local population. They are based on the ongoing work of the All Partners Task Force, which includes the Government of Japan, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, the IOC, IPC, World Health Organization and independent experts and organisations from across the world. A third version of the Playbooks is expected to be published in June. As with all the previous versions, it will take the latest scientific developments into consideration.

2. As we look into the evolving situation with the domestic infections status involving new strains, we have agreed that a decision regarding spectator capacity at the Olympic and Paralympic venues will be made in June, in line with the government’s general guidance concerning the upper limit of spectator capacity in sports events. This follows the significant decision in March, when the IOC and IPC were informed about the conclusion of the Japanese parties not to allow entry into Japan for overseas spectators for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 due to the prevailing worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the IOC, the IPC and Tokyo 2020 continue to work on optimising the number of participants attending the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.