More than 8,000 discriminatory messages were directed at Mario Balotelli, research by Kick It Out has found.
Using several footballers as case studies, the study has shown that the likes of Balotelli and Arsenal’s Danny Welbeck have been targets for racist abuse on numerous occasions.
In the case of the Liverpool forward, over 52% of the posts directed at him were racist. The findings were similar with Welbeck, with 50% of the 1,700 messages he received deemed racist.
Balotelli’s Liverpool teammate Daniel Sturridge was also one of the case studies. Out of 1,600 posts directed at him, 60% of them were discriminatory based on sexual orientation.
Worryingly, it seems that far too many people think that it’s perfectly acceptable to post such comments online.
