Manchester United have reported a 350 per cent increase in online abuse of its players ahead of a social media blackout.
United will join the rest of English football in boycotting Twitter, Instagram and Facebook from 3pm on Friday until midnight on Monday in protest over the racist, homophobic and abusive comments aimed at players.
The club carried out its own survey over a 17-month period between September 2019 and February 2021, which revealed the massive increase in abuse.
It discovered 3,300 abusive posts targeting United players – 86 per cent of which were racist and eight per cent were homophobic – with Anthony Martial, Axel Tuanzebe and Fred all confirming that they have been racially abused in recent months.