FanDuel Blocks Accounts Over Player Threats

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) have intensified their cooperation with gambling companies following the release of a report on the scale of online abuse directed at tennis players, The Guardian reports.

“The report has brought about a constructive conversation with the betting industry. We will continue to push for the industry to do more as part of a collective effort to rid tennis of betting-related abuse. We hope the gambling industry responds constructively to our call for more action on their part,” the WTA and ITF said in a joint statement.

Last week, tennis organizations revealed that athletes had received thousands of abusive messages on social media. Nearly half (40%) of all threats against tennis players in 2024 came from angry bettors.

According to The Guardian, some bookmakers have already expressed willingness to suspend accounts of customers found guilty of harassing athletes. Among them is U.S. betting giant FanDuel — an official WTA partner in the United States — which has updated its rules to include the following provision: “We may, in our sole discretion, suspend or terminate your Account and/or exclude you from our services if we determine that you pose a threat to the safety of participants in a sporting event, or discover that you engaged in the harassment of a sports official, coach or any participant in a sporting event.”

The UK Gambling Commission has also joined the effort to address the problem of aggressive bettors. One of the proposals under consideration is to create a registry of users who send abusive messages to athletes.