Privacy Policy – The Footy Desk
Last updated: {December 6, 2025}
Welcome to The Footy Desk — a global platform offering quizzes, stats, analytics, and short blogs focused on international football. Your privacy is important to us, and this policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your data.
Our website address is: https://thefootydesk.com
1. Information We Collect
A. Comments
When visitors leave comments on the site, we collect:
- Information submitted in the comment form
- IP address
- Browser user agent (for spam detection)
An anonymized hash created from your email address may be sent to Gravatar to check if you use the service.
Gravatar Privacy Policy: https://automattic.com/privacy/
Once a comment is approved, your profile picture becomes publicly visible.
B. Media Uploads
If you upload images, please avoid EXIF data (GPS location). Visitors may download and extract location details from images.
C. Cookies
We use cookies to enhance user experience and improve website performance.
- Comment cookies: Save your name, email, and website for 1 year.
- Login cookies: Last for 2 days; “Remember Me” lasts 2 weeks.
- Screen preference cookies: Last 1 year.
- Article editing cookie: Contains the post ID and expires after 1 day.
- Temporary cookie on login page: Checks if your browser accepts cookies.
D. Embedded Content
Articles may include embedded content such as videos, tweets, or images.
These external websites may:
- Collect data
- Use cookies
- Track your interaction
This happens exactly as if you visited the external site directly.
2. Analytics & Performance Tracking
We use services such as Google Analytics, Google Signals, and Cloudflare to measure traffic, performance, and user engagement.
These services may collect:
- Device type
- Browser type
- IP (may be anonymized)
- Pages viewed
- Time spent on the site
- Interaction behavior
No personally identifiable data is collected without your consent.
A. Google Analytics (GA4)
Google Analytics collects anonymized user interaction data to help improve our website.
User-Provided Data (Hashed)
If you fill out any form on our website (e.g., comment, contact form), certain data you provide (such as email or name) may be securely hashed and sent to Google Analytics for improved measurement.
This hashed data cannot be used to personally identify you and is processed under privacy-safe methods.
Google Signals & Ads Features
If enabled, Google may associate site visit data with users logged into their Google accounts. This may include:
- Cross-device tracking
- Interest-based reporting
- Ads personalization insights
Users can control ads personalization here:
https://myadcenter.google.com
Opt-out of Google Analytics
Users may opt out using the official browser add-on:
https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout/
3. Who We Share Your Data With
- Spam detection tools (e.g., Akismet) may process comment data.
- Password reset requests will include your IP address.
- Analytics data may be processed by trusted providers like Google and Cloudflare.
We never sell your data.
4. How Long We Retain Your Data
- Comments and their metadata are stored indefinitely.
- Registered users (if applicable) can see, edit, or delete their profile anytime (except username).
- Administrators can also view and edit user data.
5. Your Rights Over Your Data
If you have an account or have left comments, you may request:
- A copy of your personal data
- Correction of data
- Deletion of your data
This excludes data we must retain for administrative, legal, or security reasons.
6. Where Your Data Is Sent
- Visitor comments may be checked through automated spam detection tools.
- Analytics data may be processed through Google Analytics or Cloudflare servers.
7. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to request data access, contact us at: