Lionesses legend Jill Scott opens up on horrific social media abuse as she explains struggles of working as pundit on men's football

Former England football star Jill Scott has disclosed that she has been the subject of hateful trolls who send her sexist remarks on social media.

Scott reveals criticism
Trolled for commenting on men's game
Claims she stays away from X (formerly Twitter)

WHAT HAPPENED? Less than 24 hours after appearing as a pundit in England's Men's Euros Qualifying match against Italy, the 36-year-old former England and Manchester City player appeared on the TV programme Loose Women and revealed that despite a string of achievements in the world of football, including last year's Euro title, she has received a steady stream of hateful remarks online. The former Lioness claimed that she frequently receives cynical messages from those who argue that she is unqualified to commentate on men's sports.

WHAT THEY SAID: Leading the Loose Women panel, host Jane Moore asked Jill: "Even with all of your experience, do you get stick for being a woman commentating on football?"

"I'd like to say no, but yes you do," Scott replied [via The Mirror]. "As soon as it's the men's football, it's like 'well you've never played the men's game so what do you know'. No, but the women brought it home! For me, it's just football."

"Ian Wright does the women's football and he's very good at it. At the end of the day, you're just talking about football whether its male, whether it's female. I try and stay off Twitter."

"Twitter is usually the one where you do get a lot of negativity. But since being very young and playing a boy's game from a very young age, you used to get the parents shouting if you beat their precious son in a football match."

Manchester City Women

MCI

THE BIGGER PICTURE: While the men's game has progressed a lot in terms of inclusivity for women, the incidents revealed by Scott and also the controversies surrounding the Spanish women's team after their historic Women's World Cup win showcase the amount of work that is still required.

IN A PHOTO:

Getty

WHAT NEXT? The former European champion who played for Sunderland, Everton, Manchester City, and Aston Villa also gained notoriety as "Queen of the Jungle" after winning the 2022 season of "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here."