In the US Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), “abuse and inappropriate conduct – verbal, psychological and sexual – had become systemic and widespread among many clubs and coaches.” So Sally Q. Yates, a prosecutor called a year ago to shed light on reports of abuse and behavior in the world of women’s soccer, wrote in her 172-page report released yesterday.
A real indictment that threatens to undermine the very foundations of a movement – that of women’s football – very popular in the United States.
NWSL was charged last year after an article in The Athletic highlighted the existence of sexual abuse charges against Paul Riley, head coach of the North Carolina Courage. The article was based on the revelations and stories of a dozen athletes who had been trained by Riley. The coach has denied most of the accusations made against him. The Yates report says the league and teams have not implemented “basic measures” to protect the girls’ safety. Furthermore, the NWSL was unable to “respond appropriately to player complaints and evidence of abuse.”
The president of US Soccer (United States Soccer Federation, the league that governs women’s football) Cindy Parlow Cone said that what was revealed by the investigation “breaks hearts and creates profound disturbance”. “The abuses described have no excuses.”
The Yates report revealed that psychological and verbal abuse and violence against female players was well known in US Soccer and NWSL well before The Athletic wrote about it. Several examples are cited in the report.
Among these was that of a coach who had invited an athlete to see the weekend football match at his home and instead showed her a hard movie. Another manager forced several players to have sexual relations, a behavior that led to him being exonerated by the team owner. But when this coach a few weeks later was hired by a rival team, the former team, despite having evidence of his behavior, had preferred to keep quiet.
In fact, the report highlighted that violence and abuse were known at every level – managers, owners, coaches – but that no one has ever done anything to crush or denounce these acts. The players who had tried to raise their voices and report certain behaviors were boycotted and humiliated in training.
In a climate of total silence, the report denounces, “the predatory attitudes of the coaches have multiplied” who have been able to move undisturbed from team to team. Three coaches are most involved: they are Paul Riley, Rory Dames and Christy Holly who last year was suddenly fired from Racing Louisville without explanation. In fact, he accusations about his behavior had never been released in the media, unlike instead of Riley and Dames.