Purpose: The purpose of this study was to get a better understanding of the challenges teachers are confronted with when suddenly moving from face-to-face to online teaching. It also aimed to investigate the change of power dynamics in sudden online learning environments, particularly focussing on the role of foreign language learner autonomy in emerging online learning. Design/methodology/approach: An online survey in the form of a cross-sectional questionnaire was designed to provide a snapshot of classroom realities at the time of the survey. The survey was conducted based on snowball sampling, with the intent of collecting as much data as possible between the beginning of May and the beginning of July 2020. Participation in the survey was voluntary. The questionnaire was completed by 79 language teachers from 22 countries. The data obtained were analysed by identifying key themes and ideas (theme coding), using a grounded theory approach. Findings and originality/value: The results indicate that the shift to online learning has created spaces for teachers and students to become more autonomous, especially as the participating teachers considered autonomy one of the main affordances of online learning. Furthermore, the results also show that teachers play a vital role in enhancing their students' autonomy. Since both the participants' understandings of and experience in fostering autonomy in online environments considerably differed, some implications for future practice in the fields of teacher training and professional development are suggested.