<p>NYON, Switzerland — UEFA will join English soccer players, clubs and organizations in a social media boycott this weekend to protest against online abuse.</p>
<p>The soccer-led boycott will also be joined by English cricket, English Premiership rugby clubs, and the British Lawn Tennis Association.</p>
<p>The social media silence will start on Friday afternoon until late Monday evening, and include UEFA-organized games on Sunday in the Women’s Champions League semifinals.</p>
<p>UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin used a speech last week to 55 member federations urging people in European soccer to make formal complaints about “unacceptable tweets or messages.” </p>
<p>“We’ve had enough of these cowards who hide behind their anonymity to spew out their noxious ideologies,” Čeferin said last week in Montreux, Switzerland.</p>
<p>UEFA has also acted in cases of online abuse when players criticized match officials. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/b5dad0800ca44003b4eb538a74c41bb9">Neymar and Serge Aurier </a> both missed Champions League games in recent seasons for offensive comments about referees on social media.</p>
<p>The English campaign this weekend followed British clubs Rangers, Birmingham and Swansea shutting down their social media for several days.</p>
<p>Former France and Arsenal forward Thierry Henry also shut down his social media accounts to protest against racism and bullying.</p>
<p>English soccer officials have urged the British government to enact laws making social media companies more accountable for what appears on their platforms.</p>
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