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B-FREE, Team Up For Respect

Needs analysis

Bullying remains a considerable and unresolved issue in sport

Instead of being a positive outlet for camaraderie and personal growth, the youth sport environment can become hostile when bullying occurs. This page sets out the gap the project addresses, in the terms the Grant Agreement sets it out.

The state of affairs

Bullying in youth sports is a serious and pervasive challenge that undermines the core values of sport and the well-being of young athletes.

At its core, the project addresses the harmful behaviours, from verbal taunts and social exclusion to physical intimidation, that many young athletes encounter on the playing field. These bullying behaviours do not just bruise egos; they have profound physical, psychological, and social consequences. Young athletes who are bullied often suffer anxiety, loss of confidence, and even physical symptoms of stress.

In the long run, such a toxic environment can strip sport of its joy and camaraderie, leaving lasting scars on a child's development.

The current state of affairs across Europe and neighbouring regions highlights the urgency of this issue.

  • 65%

    of youth sport participants reported experiencing psychological violence, such as bullying, humiliation or insults, during their childhood sporting years.

    EU-wide survey spanning six countries, cited in the Grant Agreement

  • 26.7%

    of athletes in team sports had been involved in bullying, as victim or perpetrator, against 19.1% in individual sports.

    Study cited in the Grant Agreement

  • 1 in 4

    young athletes may directly face or take part in bullying on the team, as these figures suggest.

    Grant Agreement, project summary

  • 1 in 3

    is roughly the share of survey respondents who believed youth sports organisations are properly addressing bullying.

    Grant Agreement, needs analysis

Groups most affected

The three groups the project targets

Bullying in sport can affect everyone in the sporting community, but certain groups are especially impacted by the gap in current provisions. The project targets all three, so that interventions reach those most affected and those in a position to effect change.

  • Young athletes

    They are the primary victims of peer bullying and the ones whose well-being and development are at stake. Bullying behaviour among teammates can erode a young athlete's self-esteem and enjoyment of sport, leading to withdrawal from activities they once loved. In the worst cases, talented youths quit sport entirely.

  • Coaches

    They are often on the front lines of youth sport and play a dual role: they can be part of the problem, or a big part of the solution. One scoping study concluded that sport coaches do not receive nearly enough training and support to fulfil this crucial role.

  • Sports administrators and organisations

    Club managers, youth sport coordinators and federation officials set policies, enforce standards of behaviour, and create the culture in which coaches and athletes operate. Many grassroots organisations rely on general codes of conduct that do not translate to the sport context.

Current approaches

Four reasons current provision falls short

Around one third of survey respondents believed youth sports organisations are properly addressing bullying. The Grant Agreement gives four reasons for that.

  1. 01

    Patchy and untailored

    Many clubs have codes of conduct, general anti-bullying statements or a welfare officer. Unlike the school system, where anti-bullying programmes are more established, the sports sector lacks a standardised approach to bullying prevention across organisations.

  2. 02

    A keep it in house culture

    Teams have handled conflicts internally and been reluctant to admit a bullying problem publicly. There has been a tendency in sport to tolerate certain aggressive behaviours as motivators for better performance, which has let bullying continue under euphemisms like tough love or initiation rites.

  3. 03

    Coaches without preparation

    Coaching certification may mention athlete welfare broadly, but few courses cover practical strategies to prevent and address bullying. Even where a club has a rule against bullying, the coach on the ground may not know how to detect subtle bullying or how to intervene constructively.

  4. 04

    One-off interventions

    A workshop or a brochure alone cannot overturn years of ingrained behaviour without ongoing reinforcement and a shift in mindset. Past attempts by partners and local clubs struggled to sustain impact without a comprehensive, systemic approach.

Policy context

What the project is aligned to

One of the sport-specific priorities of Erasmus+ is combating violence and tackling racism, discrimination and intolerance in sport. Bullying among young athletes is fundamentally an issue of intolerance and interpersonal violence, often manifesting as discrimination or abuse of power within a team.

The EU Work Plan for Sport sets an overarching objective of safe sport free from abuse, calling for a safe environment in sport and the prevention of harassment, abuse and discrimination as a means to build healthier societies.

  • EU Framework for Action on Cyberbullying
  • EU Work Plan for Sport
  • Erasmus+ horizontal priority on inclusion and diversity
  • EU Principles of Good Governance in Sport