A new study on online abuse has revealed a startling trend in the world of sports, with professional wrestlers from WWE and AEW facing the highest levels of online abuse from fans when compared to other major sports. The research found that WWE superstar Charlotte Flair was not only the most targeted wrestler, but the most trolled athlete out of more than 350 high-profile stars across the NFL, soccer, NBA, and wrestling.
The Study’s Findings
The study, conducted by CryptoManiaks Sports, analyzed millions of social media posts using natural language and sentiment analysis tools to identify which athletes receive the most online abuse. The research found that of all the sports featured, professional wrestling had the highest levels of negative fan interactions, with female wrestlers being significantly more likely to be targeted than their male counterparts.
According to the study, former WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair faced more online harassment than any other athlete in the sample, with a staggering 36.4% of comments and mentions about her being negative. Flair was closely followed by fellow WWE superstar Nia Jax, who had a negativity rating of 35.3%. Rounding out the top five were AEW star Mercedes Moné (29.6%) and former WWE & AEW stars Saraya (29.3%) and Tegan Nox (28.6%).
Top 15 Most Targeted Wrestlers
The study provided a list of the top 15 WWE and AEW stars who receive the most online abuse, based on the percentage of negative comments analyzed.
| Rank | Name | Organisation | % Of Negative Comments |
| 1 | Charlotte Flair | WWE | 36.4% |
| 2 | Nia Jax | WWE | 35.3% |
| 3 | Mercedes Moné | AEW | 29.6% |
| 4 | Saraya | AEW | 29.3% |
| 5 | Tegan Nox | WWE | 28.6% |
| 6 | CM Punk | WWE | 27.9% |
| 7 | Chris Jericho | AEW | 25.7% |
| 8 | Cora Jade | WWE | 24.9% |
| 9 | The Young Bucks | AEW | 24.8% |
| 10 | Jade Cargill | WWE | 21.4% |
| 11 | Jon Moxley | AEW | 20.7% |
| 12 | Alexa Bliss | WWE | 20.4% |
| 13 | Britt Baker | AEW | 20.1% |
| 14 | Will Ospreay | AEW | 19.8% |
| =15 | Ricochet | AEW | 19.3% |
| =15 | Natalya | WWE | 19.3% |
| =15 | Nikki Bella | WWE | 19.3% |
The findings of this study come just days after Charlotte Flair penned a deeply personal essay for The Players’ Tribune where she spoke about the real-life trauma and emotional toll that negative fan reactions and online booing have taken on her throughout her career.
