A survey into the antics and attitude of young professional sportsmen and women indicates that they are naïve to the risks and future repercussions of their activities on social platforms.
The new report, published by Himsworths Legal, is based on its work with over 50 teams at 37 clubs and associations in football, rugby and cricket in the last year
During educational sessions on reputation they asked under 18 and under 21 age groups to complete anonymous surveys about their views and habits in using social media and other communication platforms.
What they found was a generation who perceive a disassociation between their activity on social media and the impact their actions can have on their future careers. The fact they can’t physically see the person or people they are communicating with has given them a misplaced confidence on the type of content they can share. The survey asked what players use social media for but no respondent mentioned the idea of developing a public profile.
This attitude is perhaps best exemplified by the use of ephemeral app SnapChat. The app allows users to share photos which then disappear within seven seconds of receipt. 86% of academy players use SnapChat, with 46.5% saying they had used it to send a photo to a stranger.
Matt Himsworth, Managing Director of Himsworths Legal believes that athletes need to change the way they perceive themselves. He says, “The most common misconception young athletes are guilty of is that they are consumers online. Not true. When they have a public social media account they are a part of the product.”
Indeed, many users have found out the hard way about some of the perils of social media.
• 21% of male respondents had received a message which was unpleasant or upsetting,
• this jumped to 38% for female respondents, while,
• 18% of respondents said they had been impersonated on social media
The results suggest a need for greater training for individuals and organisations in sport to recognise the risks and responsibilities that come with engaging on social media while being a professional athlete and potential role model to others.
“Online communication and social media is a large part of the conversation between NGBs, clubs, participants and coaches now, particularly for the ‘digital native’ generation which is coming through the ranks”, says Matt Himsworth.
“Education, conversation and assistance are crucial to allow young players to communicate safely, securely and responsibly.”
See the full Himsworths Legal survey here.
Read about a different side of social media and technology in sport in our Future Trends report.
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