New York (AP) – In the country of the most successful women’s national football team in the world, an abuse scandal involving coaches is causing more and more excitement. Lisa Baird has resigned as head of the US professional league NWSL – and that should only be the beginning.
«Burn everything down. Let all their heads roll, ”demanded US captain and superstar Megan Rapinoe via Twitter. At the weekend, no ball rolled, but the Association of Women Players (NWSLPA) denounced “systemic abuse” in a division that, like all other top leagues, has always consisted almost entirely of men in decisive positions.
The league confirmed Baird’s resignation in a brief statement on Twitter. According to media reports, General Counsel Lisa Levine must also leave. The trigger were allegations against the coach of North Carolina Courage, Paul Riley, who was sacked after a report by the portal “The Athletic” about alleged sexual abuse of two players. The league then interrupted its game operations and canceled all games scheduled for this weekend.
FIFA announces investigation
Baird has already taken responsibility for this. “This week and a lot this season has been incredibly traumatic for our players and I take full responsibility for the role that I had. I’m sorry for the pain so many feel, ”she said. The game break is the first overdue step to work on changing the culture in the league.
The world association FIFA has also opened an investigation into the cases, as has the US association, which co-founded the league in 2013 and continues to provide financial support, even if it has been independent for a year.
Prominent players register
Numerous players from the league of the four-time world champion and four-time Olympic champion have spoken over the past few days. Including one of her most famous: The 186-time national player Alex Morgan made a response from Baird to the allegations of a player from May public. “The league was informed several times about these allegations and repeatedly refused to investigate these allegations,” wrote the two-time world and Olympic champion in 2012. “The league must take responsibility for protecting its own players from abuse in the event of a failed trial . “
In a statement, the NWSLPA spoke of a “deeply painful day.” And: “For many players, their suffering lasted for years.” The support you get is a glimmer of hope on a dark day.
The two former soccer players Sinead Farrelly and Mana Shim had reported extensively on The Athletic magazine about their experiences with Riley. After that, the sexual harassment continued for more than a decade. The Englishman Riley has so far denied all allegations and described them to “The Athletic” as “completely untrue”. He had “never had sex with these players,” he said. However, he admitted that he had met with players and paid bills in bars.
Two other coaches had previously lost their posts due to misconduct. In August, Christy Holly was fired from Racing Louisville after players complained about a “toxic environment”. The club of 106-time German national player Dzsenifer Marozsan was also affected. The 29-year-old is on loan from her French club Olympique Lyon to their partner club OL Reign for the second half of the year. Head coach Farid Benstiti had to go there in July. According to a club official on Friday because of “inappropriate comments.”
Last week Washington Spirit separated from coach Richie Burke after numerous allegations that he was no longer allowed to work in the NWSL. His colleague Riley had been the head coach of the North Carolina Courage since 2017. Before that, he worked for other professional clubs between 2010 and 2015, including the Portland Thorns, where the former German national goalkeeper Nadine Angerer also played.
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