Kicking against online hate

In this study, light is shed on the experiences of football players in the Dutch football community concerning their reception of online hate. Previous research has explored how online hate in the Dutch football community manifests itself through sports media and hate derived from social media platforms. Even though evidence for the serious impact that online hate has on an individual’s well-being exists, no research is done on the impact that online hate experiences have on football players themselves. In order to address this research gap, in this study, seven interviews were conducted with Dutch football players to examine their experiences with online hate and the impact that it had on their emotional well-being, performance and online hate concern. In addition, participants were asked if they used certain coping mechanisms to deal with the regular reception of online hate. The findings of this research reveal that various different types of hate themes and hate practices are experienced by Dutch football players. Participants do not report any sort of effects of online hate on their emotional well-being. Online hate also does not impact their performance in a negative way, rather participants mention that online hate serves as a source of motivation to perform better. Also, their hate concern seems to be determined by the process of adaptation. The most used coping mechanisms reported by the participants were ignoring and avoiding, followed up by talking to others about their experiences.