Caroline Garcia, the tennis pro ranked 29th in the world, faced an unexpected defeat during the first round of the US Open in New York City on Tuesday. Following her loss, Garcia took to social media to spotlight the pervasive online abuse that players endure regularly.
In her first-round match, Garcia was bested by Renata Zarazua, ranked 92nd and making her Grand Slam debut. Reflecting on the aftermath, Garcia took aim at tennis governing bodies for their failure to adequately shield players from online harassment, a problem she believes has worsened with the mainstreaming of sports betting in the US. The 30-year-old French athlete, who reached the US Open semifinals in 2022 and was ranked as high as No. 4 in September 2018, felt compelled to disclose the harsh reality players face.
Sharing some of the abusive messages she received, Garcia pointed to one suggesting she consider suicide and another hoping her mother would die soon. She argued that the continued partnerships between tournaments and betting companies were attracting new people to unhealthy betting habits. “The days of cigarette brands sponsoring sports are long gone. Yet, here we are promoting betting companies, which actively destroy the lives of some people,” Garcia remarked.
Garcia was favored in her match against Zarazua, with sportsbooks assigning her a -210 to Zarazua’s +160, indicating a likely winning chance of nearly 68%. Following her convincing loss in straight sets 6-1, 6-4, Garcia endured a surge of abuse from disgruntled bettors who lost money on her supposed underperformance.
“If someone decided to say [these] things to me in public, he could have legal issues. So, why online we are free to do anything? Shouldn’t we reconsider anonymity online?” Garcia questioned, urging tennis fans and bettors to remember that professional athletes are human beings. She concluded with a plea for kindness: “Be kind. Give love. Enjoy life.”
Garcia’s post garnered support from fellow players, including Madison Keys, Katie Boulter, and Paula Badosa. Jessica Pegula, seeded sixth in the US Open, retweeted Garcia’s post on X and added, “Yep. The constant death threats and family threats are normal now.”
While Garcia is not against fans betting on tennis matches, she expressed concerns about the sport’s governing bodies partnering with and promoting gambling firms. She noted that the International Tennis Federation (ITF), Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), and United States Tennis Association (USTA) have numerous partnerships with organizations purported to protect the game’s integrity and safeguard players from abuse.
Last December, these organizations teamed up with Threat Matrix, developed by US-based data analytics company LexisNexis, to curb cyberbullying. The Threat Matrix service, which utilizes artificial intelligence and human oversight, claims to monitor social media for abusive comments and relay identified offenders to appropriate parties, including law enforcement. At the time, the governing bodies stated this partnership aimed to “protect and support athletes from mental trauma and potential real-world threat of online harassment and abuse.”
Despite these measures, none of the tennis governing bodies have publicly responded to Garcia’s recent comments.
