Angry Gamblers Behind Half of Abusive Posts

Angry gamblers account for 48% of the 12,000 abusive social media posts directed at tennis players this year according to an AI-powered detection system. The International Tennis Federation (ITF), Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) and the United States Tennis Association (USTA) have collaborated to launch a program that actively monitors posts across platforms like X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

The “Threat Matrix” service tracked 2.47 million posts from January to October, flagging approximately 12,000 posts that violated community guidelines. The system referred these abusive posts to social media platforms for removal and in serious cases, it prompted the banning of accounts. It reported posts from 15 accounts that met criminal thresholds to national law enforcement for further action.

Former world number one Victoria Azarenka expressed her satisfaction with the system emphasizing the importance of filtering and blocking harmful comments. “No one should have to endure the hate,” she stated. Caroline Garcia, a former world number four has also spoken out about the online abuse players face, urging for greater awareness of their humanity. Moreover, she suggested that partnerships between tournaments and betting companies contribute to the growing problem.

The Threat Matrix system, which operates in 39 languages helps protect 7,739 players on the ITF World Tennis Tour and 563 players in WTA tournaments. It also covers players in the Wimbledon and US Open main draws and qualifying rounds as well as chair umpires. The system has successfully shut down numerous abusive accounts, identifying angry gamblers as key triggers of this abuse. Top players like Iga Świątek, Jessica Pegula and British number one Katie Boulter have supported the initiative with Pegula highlighting the “constant death threats” she receives.