German soccer club St. Pauli quits X ahead of snap elections, calls platform a “hate machine”
A German football club is leaving X amid an increase in hate speech and disinformation on social media platforms, which the club claims could undermine the country’s snap elections.
St. Pauli announced the decision on Thursday, saying billionaire owner Elon Musk had turned the platform into a “hate machine” since taking over the company in 2022.
“Racism and conspiracy theories are allowed to spread without restraint, even in an organized way,” St. Pauli explain in a statement. “Insults and threats are rarely sanctioned and are peddled as free speech.”
The club said it had restricted posts on X and added “political statements supporting diversity and inclusion to combat hate”.
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The club, named after Hamburg’s St. Pauli district, plays in the Bundesliga and is known to fans for its left-leaning supporter base. Fan groups often chant anti-racist slogans and promote diversity within the club.
St. Pauli also emphasized Musk’s role last week’s US presidential election, and claimed his platform could influence the outcome of Germany’s snap elections scheduled for next February by “manipulating public discourse.”
“Musk is a major supporter of the Trump campaign and has also used ”
St. Pauli said it would no longer share content on X but would not deactivate the account. Club urges fans to follow latest news blue skyan alternative social media platform that has seen a surge in new members after President-elect Donald Trump won the election last week.
Musk was a key figure in Trump’s third campaign, donating millions of dollars and promoting his message on X. Trump announced this week: he will become Cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency with billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy seeking the Republican nomination.
Germany’s coalition government collapsed on November 6 when Chancellor Olaf Scholz fired the finance minister representing the pro-business Free Democrats. The German chancellor will seek a vote of confidence in the Bundestag in December.
St. Pauli It aims to relocate its nearly 250,000 followers ahead of Germany’s snap elections in February, in which the centre-right opposition Christian Democratic Union is expected to make significant gains.
The far-right Alternative for Germany party is also popular. With 76 seats, the party is the fifth largest party in the Bundestag. In September’s Thuringia state election, the Alternative for Germany became the first far-right party to win an election in Germany since World War II.
