ICC Implements AI To Address Social Media Harassment In Women’s Game

In recent years, cricket has become a major presence on social media, with players and teams engaging millions of fans worldwide. During the recent Women’s T20 World Cup, the International Cricket Council (ICC) undertook one of the largest social media moderation trials in sports, partnering with tech company GoBubble to monitor and manage harmful comments. This trial provided critical insights into the scale of social media abuse in sports, finding that nearly a fifth of comments on player or team pages contained harmful language or were generated by bots.

Understanding the ICC’s Social Media Moderation Initiative

Throughout the tournament, the ICC’s moderation program revealed concerning levels of harmful interactions. Of the 1.5 million comments analyzed across 68 accounts, approximately 271,100 contained abusive language, ranging from sexism and racism to homophobia. The ICC aimed to create a safer online space, especially as women’s cricket draws increasing global attention.

The moderation trial was launched as part of the ICC’s commitment to enhancing the online experience for players and fans. This initiative provided athletes with an opt-in option for monitoring their social media accounts to remove harmful content.

GoBubble’s AI-powered tool played a central role in identifying and filtering out harmful comments. By recognizing abusive words in multiple languages, it ensured that players were shielded from harmful content.

“One of the objectives of the ICC is to look at ways in which we can inspire as many women and girls to play cricket as possible,” Finn Bradshaw, the ICC’s Head of Digital told ESPNcricinfo. “We heard the stories from a lot of women and girls, unfortunately, once they become a bit more public, the abuse that they get online can be really inhibiting.

“The last thing you want is a teenage girl who’s got some talent and ability and then she sees what one of her heroes goes through on social media and thinks, ‘I can’t face that’. We know mental health is such a big thing across the world and social media can be terrible for mental health and so anything we can do to make that girl’s decision to play cricket easier, we want to do that.”

Challenges Female Players Face on Social Media

Female players are often the targets of derogatory comments online. Reports reveal that women athletes and even the female partners of male athletes face a disproportionately high amount of online harassment. This trial placed a critical focus on the female cricketing community, aiming to alleviate the negative impact of such abuse.

Online abuse can take a serious toll on an athlete’s mental health. For teenage girls considering a future in sports, seeing their heroes subjected to abuse can be discouraging. The ICC recognizes this challenge and sees social media moderation as a vital part of supporting players’ mental health.

Although currently available only to female players, the ICC is considering expanding the moderation tool to include male players by the end of 2025. The ICC aims to review feedback from this initial trial and adjust as needed to ensure the tool’s effectiveness across genders.

As sports continue to embrace digital platforms, the need for moderation will only grow. Cricket’s initiative may pave the way for other sports to adopt similar tools, creating a safer social media space for athletes across the board.