German soccer club St. Pauli quits X ahead of snap elections, calls platform a "hate machine"

A German soccer club is leaving X because of the increase in hate speech and disinformation on the social media platform that it claims could undermine the snap elections in the country.

FC St. Pauli announced the decision on Thursday, saying billionaire owner Elon Musk has turned the platform into a "hate machine" since he took over the company in 2022. 

"Racism and conspiracy theories are allowed to spread unchecked and even curated," St. Pauli said in a statement. "Insults and threats are seldom sanctioned and are sold as freedom of speech."