Havertz’s Wife Shares Shocking Online Abuse After Arsenal Defeat

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Sophia Havertz, the wife of Arsenal player Kai Havertz, has revealed the shocking online abuse she received following Arsenal’s FA Cup defeat to Manchester United. Taking to Instagram, she shared screenshots of abusive messages, including one threatening to “slaughter” her unborn baby.

The messages came after Havertz missed a crucial chance to win the game for Arsenal and then had his penalty saved in the shootout, which ultimately saw United progress to the fourth round.

Sophia Havertz expressed her disgust and dismay at the level of abuse, stating, “For anyone to think it’s okay to write something like this is so shocking to me… I hope you are ashamed of yourself.”

In response to the threat against her child, she added: “I’m not sure what to even say but please guys be more respectful. We are better than this…”

Online Abuse in Football

This incident highlights the ongoing issue of online abuse directed at footballers and their families. Despite efforts by football authorities and law enforcement to combat this problem, players continue to be subjected to hateful and threatening messages on social media.

In recent years, there have been numerous high-profile cases of players receiving racist, sexist, and homophobic abuse online. Following the Euro 2021 final, England players Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford, and Jadon Sancho were targeted with racist abuse after missing penalties in the shootout defeat to Italy.

Efforts to Combat Online Abuse

Football governing bodies have taken steps to address this issue. FIFA has implemented a Social Media Protection Service (SMPS) to monitor and filter abusive content on players’ social media feeds. During the 2023 Women’s World Cup, the SMPS reported that 20% of players received discriminatory, abusive, or threatening messages, with half of those being anti-gay, sexual, or sexist.

The English Football Association has also provided funding to police to help tackle online abuse during major tournaments.

Despite these efforts, the abuse directed at Sophia Havertz demonstrates that there is still much work to be done to eradicate this problem from football. It is crucial for social media platforms, football authorities, and law enforcement to work together to protect players and their families from online harassment and hold perpetrators accountable for their actions.


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