Alex Morgan, a USWNT and Orlando Pride striker, called Tuesday for the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) to stop the systemic failures that have led to a decade-long period of sexual harassment of some league coaches.
Paul Riley was fired by the North Carolina Courage after he was accused of making inappropriate comments and coercion about players' weights and sexual orientations.
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The Athletic published an investigation that interviewed more than 12 players from each Riley's team since 2010, including Sinead Farrelly and Mana Shim, who were named in the report with accusations against Riley.
Morgan joined Shim and Farrelly on Tuesday's NBC's "Today", to discuss the League's inaction.
Morgan urged the league to take proactive steps to establish policies to protect players.
Morgan stated, "I'm here for Mana and Sinead to support them and to continue to amplify the voices of their voices and just show the systemic failures from the league and what wrong they did in handling Mana’s case, complaint, investigation and where they failed Mana, Sinead, probably many other women."
"When I think back, I tried my best to be a good friend and teammate to Mana when she filed a complaint. At the time, there wasn't an anti-harassment program in place, no league HR, no anonymous hotline, and there was no reporting system.
"We have now begun to put these items in place, by players' demand, and not by the league being proactive. We ask that the league become proactive and not reactive. Transparency is what we are asking for.
Shim demanded better player protection policies and spoke out about the harassment she suffered under Riley.
He is a predator. Shim stated that he had sexually harassed me and Sinead and took our careers away. "It was clear that there was a possession from Paul, but also from the team I was playing for. They silenced me because of multiple issues. My sexuality was the most important.
"And every day that I went to work, every practice, every game that I played, I didn’t feel confident and was afraid. My teammates were the only thing that helped me get through.
Farrelly stated that her public disclosure of the allegations had raised awareness.
She said, "The support and validation of my story by everyone worldwide has just been, blown me away" and that it had given her pain a purpose. "Mana, Alex, and a few other women who we worked with, as well as every person who reached out and showed support, have turned this moment into something that has become a movement and made it matter.
"They have really amplified our voices, which is huge, and made this what it should, which was a huge deal. They are demanding change."
In light of the allegations against Riley, Lisa Baird was forced to resign as NWSL commissioner. Matches scheduled for Friday and Saturday were also postponed.
The National Women's Soccer League Players Association released a statement Tuesday in support of the players. It also confirmed that matches will continue as planned.
"Today we stand with Sinead and Mana [McCullough] while they continue to tell stories. We have decided to continue with Wednesday's competition. However, we will not be satisfied until our demands are met. The statement said, "#NoMoreSilence."
Riley denied the allegation.
The league turned down an offer by Farrelly and Shim earlier this year to help investigate further incidents in which Riley was accused of abusing his managerial position.
The NWSL is in its ninth season and has been plagued by recent scandals involving team officials. On Tuesday, Steve Baldwin, majority owner of Washington Spirit, resigned.
Richie Burke, the Spirit coach was fired following a Washington Post report detailing verbal abuse and emotional abuse of his players. After an independent investigation, Burke was officially dismissed by the league and Spirit was sanctioned last week.
According to the NWSLPA, it created an anonymous hotline that players can use to report abuse and made a sports psychologist available to any player (current, former, or future) who required a confidential consultation.
U.S. Soccer announced Friday that it will launch an independent investigation.
FIFA stated that its judicial bodies had opened an investigation into this matter.
