Chol Targeted by Racial Abuse After Narrow AFL Loss

Hawthorn forward Mabior Chol has been subjected to vile racial abuse on social media following his team's six-point loss to the Western Bulldogs on April 4, 2025.

Chol shared a screenshot of the abusive messages on his Instagram story, which contained racist terms and foul language directed at him after the match. This is not the first time the player has been targeted—he faced similar abuse in 2022 while playing for the Gold Coast Suns.

"You can talk s* all you want but don't be like this guy."** — Mabior Chol, via Instagram story, referring to the abusive post.

AFL Condemns the Abuse

AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon issued a strong statement condemning the attacks.

"The AFL strongly condemns the vile and racist social media messages sent to Hawthorn player Mabior Chol following Friday night's match. Racism has no place anywhere, anytime — not in our game, not in the community and not online. Players, or anyone, should never be subjected to this sort of abuse."

Dillon added a clear warning: "To be clear, if you think this behaviour is acceptable, then you are not welcome in our game. Mabior's courage to call this out should be commended and our immediate focus is supporting him and the Hawthorn Football Club."

The AFL integrity unit will work with the club to investigate the matter.

Club Rallies Behind Chol

Hawthorn chief executive Ash Klein reinforced the club's zero-tolerance stance on racism.

"It is simply not acceptable. There is no place for racism in our game and in our society. If you are the sort of person who thinks it's OK to make a comment or send a message like this, we don't want you as part of our game."

Klein praised Chol for speaking out: "We commend Mabior's courage in calling this out and we stand with him. Our immediate focus is on wrapping our arms around and supporting Mabior."

Hawthorn is working closely with the AFL to address the situation.