Alex Scott has opened up about her experiences of abuse on social media since her career transitioned from professional footballer to expert.
Speaking on a new episode of the Between The Lines podcast, the former Arsenal defender said she felt she was “ taking all the hits ” but was trying hard to help others to follow his career path.
Alex, 34, also admitted the abuse only escalated after making headlines earlier this month, when she was set to replace Sue Barker on the quiz show A Matter of Sports .
Speaking: Alex Scott opened up about her experiences of abuse on social media since her career shifted from professional footballer to expert
The new episode of the Between The Lines podcast that explores how hate speech on social media platforms has permeated football across all levels of the game, with Alex admitting she’s noticed it more since she moved on from player to expert.
“ Before, when I saw all the posts, I was like ‘oh my god I can’t take this, I’m talking about something that I love, I don’t understand. ”
“ For me it’s just remembering with that sometimes that I know I’m helping to create that change and there’s a bigger picture that I have to keep my head down and stay focused and keep working. she explained.
“ I think, because I’ve talked about it before, I went through a stage where it really affected me. Some of the comments… I knew I couldn’t tell my mom because then she would worry, and I was taking all of this negativity on myself.
Tough: Speaking on a new episode of the Between The Lines podcast, the former Arsenal defender said she felt she was ‘taking all the hits’ but was trying hard to help the others to follow his career path.
“ I kind of lost myself and my personality because I knew everything that was going on around her. It wasn’t until I got to a point where I was like, ‘I can’t take this anymore, it’s getting too much for me’ that I talked about it. ”
Alex referred to the recent talk about his supposed new role in Question of Sport, admitting:
“ What I’ve done now is when I go through those times I do, I tell people – I think we just saw recently that I saw him again with everything that comes to happen – but I know that is changing.
“People know that we are ready for change in this country, and in other countries as well, all over the world. I have been at the forefront and take all the punches, but like I said, I remember doing it for a positive reason – there are others that pass.
Online abuse: Alex admitted the abuse only escalated after making headlines earlier this month, when she would replace Sue Barker on the quiz show A Matter of Sports
Later in the interview, Alex went on to explain how, as a woman of color working in football, there was more pressure on her to play in her expert roles, the spotlight on mistakes. being more intense.
“ In the business we’re in, we know that if we make a mistake or say a name that’s wrong, it’s going to be scrutinized. I think for me, I am never in competition with anyone else, I am in competition with myself.
“I always want to be the best I can be, no matter what TV program I’m on. I know when I go back I analyze myself all the time – I should have said this, I could have done it, I could have provided more information there – so for me, whatever the job i do, when i was a soccer player i wanted to be the best for me or i felt i let myself down.
“ I actually still pinch myself, to be honest, because I don’t think I’ve made the transition to this thought ‘I want to be in the headlines, I want to be that first woman, I want to do this’ – I thought ‘why aren’t there more women? I could not understand.
Pressure: Alex went on to explain how, as a woman of color working in football, there was more pressure on her to play in her expert roles
“I know this sport, I talk about it constantly with all my friends, I played at the highest level. In my head, I just didn’t understand why. That’s why I went there, not for the headlines, but to be passionate about what I do. I was like, “you need more women, we need this representation.”
Alex has been the target of “ terrible trolls ” on social media after being told he is in the running to replace Sue Barker in A Question Of Sport.
She was rumored to have gotten the gig earlier this month after Sue, 64, was sacked from her host post after 24 years.
lex, of Irish and Jamaican descent, has since received thousands of racist comments online.
End of an era: Alex was the target of ‘terrible trolls’ on social media after being announced to be in the running to replace Sue Barker in A Question Of Sport
Much of the abuse suggests Alex is only in pole position for the job due to the color of his skin.
One of them said to her: ‘Wow I see you got the job that Sue Barker did so well for so many years. This is obviously because of your presentation skills. Nothing else. Nothing PC. Nothing about having token blacks on the BBC. You must be very proud. ‘
A source called the comments “ disgusting ” as reports suggest the star was contacted by troll hunting company Defuse Global after being bombarded with messages.
MailOnline has contacted a representative for Alex and the BBC for comment.
You can listen to the second episode of “Between the Lines with Melissa Reddy” now.
Career: Alex previously played for England and Arsenal before becoming a successful TV presenter (pictured in 2017)