The United States Soccer Federation, as well as the National Women's Soccer League coaches and executives, were found to have failed in their duty to protect players.
"Our investigation has revealed a league in which abuse, verbal and emotional abuse, and sexual abuse, had become systemic, spanned multiple teams, coaches, and victims," the report said. Abuse in the NWSL is a result of a deeper culture in women's soccer that starts in the youth league.
A copy of the summary report was obtained by the sports network. Sally Yates was a deputy attorney general in the U.S.
There is a previously undisclosed revelation as to the manner in which Racing Louisville's firing of Christy Holly as manager was done. According to the report, Holly told the player that he would touch her "for every pass" she made. Simon, through a spokeswoman, agreed to be identified as a victim of abuse.
Holly put his hand down and up. Simon would try to cross her legs and push him away so she wouldn't anger him, but when her teammate picked her up to drive home, she broke down crying.
The reason for Holly's firing wasn't made public.
Simon said that there are too many athletes who suffer in silence because they are scared that no one will help them or hear them. That is how I felt. I relied on my faith to keep me going through difficult times. I want to make sure that no one else knows what I did. The first step towards achieving respectful workplace is achieved by this report. It is my hope that the change we have brought about will benefit our league and the game we all love.
Cindy Parlow Cone said that the investigation's findings were heartbreaking. There is no place for abuse in any training facility or workplace. U.S. Soccer is committed to doing everything in its power to ensure that all players have a safe and respectful place to learn, grow and compete. We will convene leaders in soccer at all levels across the country to collaborate on the recommendations so we can create long- lasting change.
The investigation was started after The Athletic published allegations of sexual harassment against former Portland Thorns manager Paul Riley. Riley invited both players back to his apartment and asked them to kiss each other in exchange for getting the Thorns out of a conditioning drill the next day, as well as drinking with players and sending lewd photos to Shim, according to two former Thorns players.
The Thorns didn't follow up on additional allegations from Farrelly that included having a sexual relationship with him. There were many allegations against Riley.
According to the report, players described a pattern of sexually charged comments, unwanted sexual advances and sexual touching.
According to the report, the abuse by coaches wasn't always sexual in nature, with former Chicago Red Stars managerRory Dames among those found to have verbal and emotionally abused players.
"We heard of manipulation that was about power, not improving performance, as well as retaliation against those who tried to come forward," the report said.
The report found that the NWSL and USSF failed to put in place basic measures for player safety. The NWSL teams, the league and the federation failed to adequately address reports of abuse, according to the report.
"Teams, the League, and the Federation failed to respond appropriately when confronted with player reports and evidence of abuse, even as some leaders privately acknowledged the need for workplace protections." Abused coaches moved from team to team, laundered by press releases thanking them for their service, and positive references from teams that minimized or even concealed wrongdoing. The people in a position to correct the record didn't speak. No one at the teams, the League or the Federation wanted a better coach.
The abuse was allowed to go on because the teams failed to identify and inform others of the coaches' misdeeds. The culture of abuse, silence and fear of retaliation was the reason for this.
The report gave more information as to how Riley was allowed to coach in the NWSL despite being fired by the Thorns for abusing players. The Thorns president of soccer told the Western New York Flash that Riley was put in a bad position.
The flash had a positive job referral for Riley, according to the report. He was employed by the club. Flynn and Levine received Thorns reports, but no additional information was provided to the flash.
When Riley was considered for the managerial position for the U.S. women's national team, the Thorns owner said it would be a good idea for Riley to withdraw. Riley publicly withdrew himself from consideration after at least fourteen conversations among 11 people at the Federation, the League, the Portland Thorns, and the NC Courage. The report that Riley had a relationship with a Portland player to the League, others at the Federation, or the Courage never came up during those conversations.
Despite public statements to the contrary, the Chicago Red Stars, Portland Thorns and Racing Louisville didn't fully cooperate with the Yates investigation.
The report states that the Portland Thorns tried to impede our use of relevant documents and interfered with our access to relevant witnesses. The non-disclosure and non-disparagement agreements it signed with Holly made Racing Louisville FC refuse to allow witnesses to answer questions about Holly's tenure. The production of relevant documents was delayed by the Chicago Red Stars.
According to the report, the Thorns tried to claim that certain information, including the Thorns' 2015 report of their investigation into Riley, was protected by attorney-client privilege or common interest privilege. After a period of months, the Thorns relented.
According to the report, teams and the USSF seem to have prioritized legal exposure to litigation by coaches over player safety and well-being.
There were other failures of the NWSL and USSF.
The report states that the league and the federation didn't do anything to correct the team's inaccurate description or minimize the coach's conduct. The Portland Thorns, the Federation, and the League failed to ensure that Riley's conduct was accurately disclosed to the other teams.
Over 100 past and present NWSL players were interviewed.
The report called for greater transparency in order to prevent abusive coaches from moving to another team. Nondisclosure and non-disparagement agreements are used to protect information about abusive coaches.
The report acknowledges that the responsibility for accountability lies with the NWSL and its teams. The USSF doesn't have the power to sanction executives. According to the report, no organization took ownership over player safety, and that the USSF could put additional teeth into its licensing requirements. In the case of Riley, the USSF suspended the licenses of the coaches found to have engaged in wrongdoing.
The NWSL should be required to conduct timely investigations into allegations of abuse, impose appropriate discipline, and immediately distribute investigation outcomes, according to the report.
The report noted that the current USSF's anti-harassment and anti-bully policy does not apply to professional leagues or non-national team players.
To better establish a single point of contact for player safety, the USSF, the NWSL and teams should each designate an individual within their organizations who is responsible for player safety. The NWSL should be required to give the results of the surveys to the USSF.
None of the coaches mentioned are still coaching in the league, but some executives and owners are. The findings of the NWSL/NWSL PA Joint Investigation should be looked into by the NWSL.
After The Athletic report was published, the investigation began. Yates was retained by the USSF to investigate. The NWSL and the NWSL Players Association are conducting separate investigations. A source with knowledge of the Yates investigation said that the two investigations did not share the same information.
The US Soccer Federation announced in a news release that it was already making changes to its player safety program. Establishing a new office of participant safety to oversee the USSF's conduct policies and reporting mechanisms, publishing soccer records from SafeSport's centralizedDisciplinary database to publicly identify individuals who have been disciplined, suspended or banned, and mandating a uniform minimum standard for background are some of the things
A new committee of the board of directors has been created to address the report's recommendations in the future. The committee will be chaired by Danielle Slaton.
"Truth Be Told - The Fight For Women's Professional Soccer" will premiere on October 4th. It's on the ESPYS, as well as on the Disney Channel and Disney+.
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