LONDON, October 22, 2026 (ATP Media Release)
ATP Safe Sport prevented more than 234,000 abusive comments from reaching players and fans across ATP and player social media channels during the past year, helping protect the tennis community from online abuse.
Delivered in partnership with Tennis Data Innovations (TDI), sports technology company Sportradar, Social Protect and Arwen AI, ATP Safe Sport was launched in 2024 as part of the ATP’s broader commitment to player welfare. Combining AI-enabled moderation, specialist threat assessment, investigations and collaboration with law enforcement authorities, the programme continues to evolve and strengthen its ability to protect players from online harm.
During its second year, ATP Safe Sport analysed more than 3.7 million comments across ATP and player social media channels. More than 284,000 abusive comments were identified, with over 82% removed in real time before reaching players and fans.
The findings highlight the scale of the challenge facing professional tennis players online. More than 85% of players who received social media engagement were subjected to abusive comments originating from more than 100,000 social media accounts.
As online abuse continues to grow across sport, ATP Safe Sport has expanded both its reach and capability to better support players. Following the introduction of Social Protect, moderation services are now available to men’s tennis players across all ATP rankings, alongside enhanced platform coverage, automated threat alerts and a dedicated mobile application.
Beyond content moderation, the programme continued to strengthen its safeguarding capabilities. More than 1,800 comments were escalated for specialist assessment, alongside 690 automated threat alerts. Every alert was reviewed by trained investigators to assess potential risks to players and determine whether further action was required.
ATP Safe Sport also continued to drive accountability for online abuse. During the past year, cases were referred to local, national and international law enforcement, prosecutorial and government authorities, reinforcing the ATP’s commitment to identifying perpetrators and supporting action beyond content moderation.
The programme’s direct support for players continued to grow, with an increasing number of cases being brought to ATP Safe Sport by players and their representatives, enabling tailored safeguarding and investigative support.
Andrew Azzopardi, ATP Director of Safeguarding, said: “Player welfare sits at the heart of the ATP’s safeguarding work. Preventing more than 234,000 abusive comments from reaching players and fans demonstrates the tangible impact the programme is having every day. Online abuse has no place in tennis. We will keep investing in the technology, expertise and partnerships that protect players, and we will continue working with the authorities to hold those responsible to account.”
Adam Pennock, Sportradar VP of Integrity Services, said: “The scale of abuse identified during the past year underlines why proactive safeguarding measures are essential in modern sport. By combining AI-enabled moderation with specialist investigations, threat assessment and collaboration with authorities, ATP Safe Sport is helping protect players while supporting meaningful action against those responsible for online abuse.”
As ATP Safe Sport continues to evolve, the programme will further strengthen player support, expand engagement across the ATP Tour and enhance its safeguarding capabilities through continued innovation and collaboration with its partners.
