Barriers to Reporting Hate and Discrimination
🚫 Why Discrimination and Hate in Sport Often Goes Unreported
Even though discrimination and hate cause real harm, many athletes, coaches, and fans may choose not to report it.
Common Reasons People Stay Silent
😨 Fear
They worry about backlash, losing their spot on the team, or being singled out by their peers.
Activity
💬 Think about it: How could your club remove fear as a barrier to reporting?
Reveal answer
When sharing information about reporting in your club, you can make it clear that reports will not affect team selection or reflect poorly on them.
🤷♂️ Mistrust
They think reporting won’t lead to change because they might mistrust that the National Governing Body, club volunteers, the police, or other services will act in their best interest or choose to side with the perpetrator- “What’s the point?”
Activity
💬 Think about it: How could your club remove mistrust as a barrier to reporting?
Reveal answer
If you do have people report issues to your club, publicly share the action that has been taken, whilst respecting confidentiality and not explicitly mentioning the names of those involved.
😐 Normalisation
Harmful behaviour gets brushed off as “banter” or “just part of sport.”
Activity
💬 Think about it: How could your club remove normalisation as a barrier to reporting?
Reveal answer
As someone who takes part in sport, you need to call out banter and inappropriate comments and say they’re not acceptable at your club.
🧱 Practical Barriers
People may not know how to report, or feel too overwhelmed to go through the process.
Activity
💬 Think about it: How could your club remove practical barriers as a barrier to reporting?
Reveal answer
Your club should make sure your policies are easy to read and are accessible online or in person.
📉 Impact of under-reporting
Let's look at what happens when discrimination and hate goes unreported:
| ❌ Consequence | 💬 Why it matters |
| Reporters feel isolated | They may think no one cares or understands |
| Clubs stay unaware | Patterns of abuse go unnoticed and unaddressed |
| Perpetrators feel 'untouchable' | Silence can be mistaken for acceptance and incidents may continue. |
Table caption: A table showing the consequences of underreporting hate and discrimination in sport.
💬 The Bigger Picture
When discrimination and hate isn’t reported:
-
The perpetrator may continue harming others.
-
Reporters may believe they just have to “put up with it.”
-
Communities lose the chance to understand and address the problem.
-
Resources can’t be properly allocated to support change.
✅ Everyone Deserves Respect
No one should be targeted for who they are. Reporting discrimination and hate helps:
-
Stop future incidents.
-
Hold perpetrators accountable.
-
Build safer, more inclusive sporting environments.