Online donation site GoFundMe has shut down Israel Folau's fundraising campaign, which was set up last week to provide costs with his battle with former employer Rugby Australia.
GoFundMe released a statement today to the Sydney Morning Herald, saying ‘after a routine period of evaluation, they've come to the conclusion the campaign violates their terms of service.’
They will be issuing full refunds to all donors.
"As a company, we are absolutely committed to the fight for equality for LGBTIQ+ people and fostering an environment of inclusivity.
"While we welcome GoFundMe engaging in diverse civil debate, we do not tolerate the promotion of discrimination or exclusion," they said.
"In the days since Mr Folau's campaign launched, more than one million dollars have been donated to hundreds of other campaigns, large and small, across Australia. Those acts of kindness are the heart of GoFundMe.
"Our platform exists to help people help others. Australians have shown themselves to be among the most kind and generous people in the world. We look forward to helping more Australians fundraise for causes they care about in the coming months and years."
GoFundMe's fine print says the crowdfunding site cannot be used for "campaigns we deem, in our sole discretion, to be in support of, or for the legal defense of alleged crimes associated with hate, violence, harassment, bullying, discrimination, terrorism, or intolerance of any kind relating to race, ethnicity, national origin, religious affiliation, sexual orientation or sex."
By the time it was shut down, at around midday today, the campaign had reached $750,000 of its AUD $3 million goal.
It comes after the sacking of Israel Folau last month by Rugby Australia for repeatedly making homophobic comments on social media. It led to the former cross code star deciding to appeal the decision, contrary to his earlier claims that he would walk away from the game if he was found to be in breach of his contract.