National Women’s Soccer League players on Sunday demanded accountability from its leadership, after “no one in a position of power or ability” acted against a former coach accused of sexual misconduct.
In the first on-camera interviews of players since last week’s firing of North Carolina Courage Coach Paul Riley and resignation of NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird, Orlando Pride goalkeeper Erin McLeod and NJ/NY Gotham FC midfielder McCall Zerboni told NBC News that the league cannot be viewed as a safe workplace.
“No, absolutely not,” Zerboni said. “How do we know that if we turn up to work everyday that this is not going to happen to us? Or that it’s not going to happen again? Because it did, again and again and again and no one in a position of power or ability stopped it.”
U.S. Soccer, the sport’s national governing body, announced Sunday night that it had tapped former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates to lead an investigation.
“U.S. Soccer takes seriously its responsibility to vigorously investigate the abhorrent conduct reported, gain a full and frank understanding of the factors that allowed it to happen and take meaningful steps to prevent this from happening in the future,” according to a U.S. Soccer statement.
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Riley’s termination came after a report in The Athletic detailed allegations made by several players on teams that Riley has coached since 2010. Specifically in The Athletic report, veteran midfielder Sinead Farrelly said she had been coerced into having sex with her coach, Riley, on multiple occasions.
Farrelly and midfielder Meleana “Mana” Shim both also told The Athletic that, after a night of drinking in 2015, Riley brought them back to his apartment and pressured them to kiss each other as he watched. At the time, he was coach of the Portland Thorns FC, a team he led between 2013 and 2015.
Riley responded in writing to a list of 23 questions from The Athletic, saying in an email that the majority of the allegations are “completely untrue.”
“I have never had sex with, or made sexual advances towards these players,” he wrote.
Riley wrote that he sometimes socialized with players and occasionally picked up bar tabs, “but I do not take them out drinking.”
He said that “there’s a chance I’ve said something along the way that offended someone,” before adding that “I do not belittle my players, comment on their weight, or discuss their personal relationships.”
The former coach could not be reached for comment on Monday by NBC News.
“It hurts my heart knowing that this has happened to so many players in this league,” McLeod said. “I want to play in a league that I’m proud to play in and I think things have to change. Or else I don’t think it’s a league worth playing in.”
She and Zerboni said the league has failed to protect players from abusive coaches.
However, Zerboni, who played parts of four seasons under Riley with the Western New York Flash and North Carolina Courage, and McLeod declined to discuss any individual coaches, saying they wanted to focus on broader systemic issues in the league.
“I have to acknowledge the courage that it took Mana Shim and Sinead Farrelly to come forward with their stories,” McLeod said.
“I cannot imagine the weight that they felt for so many years about that. I think every player right now is experiencing a different different level of hurt and fear. And I think what’s really clear right now is there is a toxicity in the NWSL that we have a chance to get rid of completely and I think this is the opportunity to do that.”
The NWSL postponed all of its matches this past weekend following the bombshell report.
Fans of the Portland Thorns FC rallied outside their team’s stadium on Saturday night, demanding the club answer for its actions while Riley was coach.
“The article is a difficult read and there are some horrifying revelations,” according to a statement from the Thorns. “We have grown since 2015 as an organization and will continue to seek to improve and get better.”
Brooke Glatz contributed.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
