Gambling and social media abuse of women in sport – what is going on?

A significant portion of the abuse that tennis players receive comes from gamblers who have lost bets, according to Signify, which has collaborated with tennis authorities to identify abuse through an artificial intelligence-led detection system called Threat Matrix.

40% of all reported abuse was sent by a group called “angry gamblers,” with messages that were obviously related to betting activity because of the abuse’s timing or content.

A spokesperson for the Betting and Gaming Council responded when asked for a response. “We do not tolerate abuse on social media, which has no place in sports or betting,” the spokesperson said.

It added that “social media companies must immediately remove offensive content and take immediate action against users.”

Most of the year, tennis tournaments are held all over the world, making it one of the most well-liked sports for regular gamblers.

More than £100m is bet on tennis matches every day, according to a source at one of the biggest multi-platform gambling companies in the world.

The spread of bets is roughly equal between men’s and women’s tennis, with this source claiming that more matches take place on the Challenger Tour than men’s tennis.

In the United Kingdom, 13% of all sports-related gamblers in the UK chose tennis in 2023, placing it fifth place behind horse racing, football, golf, and boxing, according to a YouGov survey.

However, according to the data, 34% of tennis gamblers use websites that reward regular customers with loyalty schemes and spend over £200 each month on wagers. Some UK tennis players spend a lot and frequently, which means the stakes are higher if they lose.

That might give some insight into why Boulter and other players are so frequently abused because of their gambling behavior.

The connection between tennis and gambling has long been a source of controversy, just like it has been with other sports.

Forming official partnerships has historically been frowned upon due to concerns about potential match-fixing and ethics.

However, with the expansion of gambling online, sponsorships have become extremely lucrative. Tennis has begun to show a greater willingness to work with gambling sponsors in a time when famous players have fought for more prize money and a larger share of sponsor revenues.

Novak Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, said players should receive a greater share of the money made from sponsorships for sports in 2023.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) extended its agreement with Stake, a Curacao-based gambling company that also sponsors sports teams like Everton and the Sauber Formula 1 team, in February, making it the official betting partner of the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup.

Stake was later found to have violated UK Gambling Commission regulations by using pornographic content to promote gambling to young people, and it had withdrawn its license to operate there.

The Stakes ITF agreement is still in place, and the BBC has reached out to the body for comment.

South African-based Betway is now sponsoring the Madrid Open, Miami Open, and Swedish Open.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and online gaming provider FanDuel Group signed a multi-year agreement in 2023, inviting applicants to the Tour in North, South, and Central America.

Additionally, the WTA gives its data to Sportradar and Stats Perform, which are both licensed betting companies.

In the UK, male gamblers have traditionally made up the majority of the population, but research indicates that this proportion is growing.

According to data from the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) from 2022, 42% of women had previously gambled and were most likely to do so between the ages of 35 and 54.

These figures also include non-sports gambling like casinos, slot machines, and online bingo, but also women are targeted by sports betting sites.

44% of betting establishments said they want to increase the number of female customers, according to a survey conducted by Stats Perform in 2024.

Investment bank Morgan Stanley estimates that 32% of sports betters are now women in the USA.

Gaming companies generated £15.6 billion in revenue between April 2023 and March 2024, an increase of £0.5 billion from the previous year, according to the most recent figures from the UKGC.

That means that the UK gambling industry is more than twice as lucrative as the UK music (valued at £7.6 billion in UK music) and the video game sector (valued at £7 billion in equity, trade union for performing arts and entertainment) industries.

In recent years, gambling companies in the UK have spent more than £1.5 billion on marketing, with the majority of that spending television ads. When sponsorships are taken into account, this increases to closer to £2 billion.

In recent years, the laws have become more stringent regarding gambling’s sponsorship and marketing. Among them are:

New plans were made public late last year, including a levy to raise £100 million for gambling-related research, prevention, and treatment, as well as online slot stake limits of £5 for over 25s and £2 for young adults between the ages of 18 and 24.

The Health and Social Care Committee requested additional measures from the UK government in May to better guard against potential harm from gambling.