- Twitter removed the blue checkmarks on Thursday for all users who didn't subscribe to Twitter Blue.
- That included several of the English Premier League's elite soccer players, who hit back at Elon Musk.
Elite soccer players from England's Premier League took aim at Elon Musk after their blue checkmarks were taken away on Thursday.
Twitter users who don't pay the $8-a-month fee for the Twitter Blue subscription had their checkmarks removed on April 20 as Musk seeks to make the platform more profitable.
He says it's necessary to stop fraudulent accounts and bots, while also ending a "lords and peasants system" which saw verification limited to notable accounts, like celebrities, businesses, and journalists.
Twitter Blue led to several trolls impersonating high-profile accounts, while those who've paid for the blue checkmark have been mocked. Now the legacy checkmarks have finally been removed after months of Musk teasing the cull, more stars are speaking out.
Aymeric Laporte — a Spanish defender who plays for Manchester City, the reigning champions of English soccer's top division — tweeted: "Damn Elon what did u do lol."
But his criticism grew after one user replied: "You're rich. Pay the $8."
"I'm not paying for something that was perfectly fine before some crazy dude decided to change everything," Laporte said.
—Aymeric Laporte (@Laporte) April 20, 2023
A day earlier, Laporte came on as a substitute in the Champions League game against Bayern Munich, which saw City progress to the semi-finals.
His teammate Riyad Mahrez, who has 3.8 million Twitter followers, tweeted about the change about an hour later. "Already lost it once, not scared of not having it anymore," he said. "I'm not paying for this weird ideas."
Mason Mount, who plays for Chelsea and the England national team, said he would be leaving the platform.
"Over the years I've thoroughly enjoyed connecting with you all on Twitter," he tweeted. "Sadly, the platform is changing so I have decided to delete my account."
Meanwhile, Gary Lineker — a former England soccer player who now hosts the BBC's "Match of the Day" — said he had subscribed to Twitter Blue. "Same here," he replied to a user who explained she only subscribed for the ability to edit tweets within 30-minutes of posting.
"Pointless. It takes me way longer to realise I've messed up," she said. "And now I'm in the uncool gang."
Manchester City did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.