Gareth Southgate rails against ‘callous, toxic influencers’ harming young men
19 March 2025, 08:29
Sir Gareth Southgate has hit out at “toxic” male influencers branding them "callous and manipulative” as he slammed their impact on young men.
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The former England manager said young men across Britain are “suffering”, feeling “isolated” and turning to toxic creators online in a “search for direction.”
Following in the footsteps of famous authors, actors, entrepreneurs and members of the Royal Family, Sir Gareth delivered a speech titled 'The Beautiful Game: Building Belief and Resilience in a Younger Generation' at the University of London last night.
Young men have been left without role models, he said, pointing to fathers spending less time in their communities.
“This void is filled by a new kind of role model who do not have their best interest at heart,” he said.
“These are callous, manipulative and toxic influencers, whose sole drive is for their own gain.
“They willingly trick young men into believing that success is measured by money or dominance, never showing emotion, and that the world … including women … is against them.”
Southgate joins a slew of public figures appearing to hit out at influencers like Andrew Tate, who play on young men’s insecurities and foster hatred for women and other groups.
Tate himself recently fled to the United States amid charges of rape and human trafficking in Romania.
The former defender has visited community centres, schools and a prison in recent months, and he said: "Today, young people are bombarded by information at all times of the day.
"They are targeted with images of the perfect body, the perfect career and the perfect life. A beautifully crafted highlights reel where success appears to be instant and effortless. How can this make them feel good about themselves?
"The solutions are complex because bad habits have been formed. But ignoring the negative impact of social media on our young people is not an option."
Young men must be able to “find comfort in their own identity and a sense of belonging to those around them” instead of being judged “by how much they grow, by the effort they put in and the character they develop.
“We have to show young men that character is more important than status,” he said.
“That how you treat others is more important than how much money you make.”
The former England boss began his speech by looking back on his career as a player.Starting with his missed penalty at Euro 96 that ended England's hopes of reaching the final, which he said would always haunt him, Southgate described how he had learned to grow from difficult experiences.
He made changing the culture and image of the England team his biggest priority after taking over the hot seat and saw the difference when Eric Dier stepped up to the penalty spot to send England through to the quarter-finals at the World Cup in 2018.
"In 1996, I had walked 30 yards to the penalty spot believing I would miss," said Southgate.
"In 2018, Eric had walked the same 30 yards believing he would score.
"With England, we gave ourselves the best chance to succeed. And we must give our young men the best chance to succeed as well. That's the message we need to offer young men today.
"Not everyone will win trophies, not everyone will be at the top of their field. But everyone can live a life where they can constantly strive to improve.
"That is how we will create a young generation, a society, and a nation of which we can all be very proud. And I'm looking forward to playing whatever role I can to help make it happen."
