Another player Hammond told the Joint Investigative Team that he assured Kurtz that she was not chubby and told her that "sometimes, coaches choose their words poorly." 2. Create and Enforce a Policy Discouraging the Use of NDAs in Connection with Allegations of Misconduct Simon was afraid to tell anyone of Holly's abuse because she was scared for her physical safety if Holly found out she had reported him. Another player said that Pauw was able to monitor players and would tell them they could not go to the pool in the afternoon. One player reported that club staff living in the same housing as players led to unprofessional interactions. Shim declined politely so as not to upset Riley, stating she had to prepare for a game the following day, and she walked out the door despite his attempts to persuade her to stay. When they arrived at the hotel, where the team was staying on the same floor, she and Riley walked back together. In a separate survey of USWNT players, there were several negative comments about Dames: survey comments stated that the "head coach was disrespectful to players and created a hostile work environment." 12 Each individual was invited to speak with the Joint Investigative Team. In each instance in which a report of misconduct was referred to another entity, the NWSL and the NWSLPA were consulted and agreed to the referral. B. It's important to have time to yourself in any relationship. The NWSLPA regularly encouraged its members to share relevant information with the Joint Investigative Team. In a written statement, Wilkinson denied this account of his discussion with Lines. U.S. Soccer failed to address allegations against Riley and Dames as early as 2014, when it received comments in NWSL player surveys stating that Riley and Dames were verbally and emotionally abusive. In one text, he sent her a photo of himself in compression shorts. Simon explained that after she confronted Holly for sexually abusing her, as discussed in greater detail above, Holly began verbally abusing her, including in front of other players. Following the conclusion of the USSF Investigation, the Joint Investigative Team reviewed the Report of the Independent Investigation to the U.S. Soccer Federation Concerning Allegations of Abusive Behavior and Sexual Misconduct in Women's Professional Soccer (the "USSF Report"). Williams, who was not at the meeting, reported being told by the Longs and a staff member that players were not happy because the team was not doing well. Simon eventually deleted Snapchat from her phone because she did not want Holly to continue sending her inappropriate photos, but Holly would ask her why she had deleted the application or encourage her to download it again. A second investigation into systemic abuse in the National Women's Soccer League was released Wednesday, providing further details of how the league, its clubs and the U.S. Soccer Federation failed to protect players and allowed misconduct to run rampant throughout the 10-year-old league. U.S. Soccer's 2018 investigation into Dames's conduct surfaced several concerns about his interactions with players, but minimized the breadth and severity of these concerns and failed to protect players during the 16 months it took to complete the investigation. A. U.S. Soccer, the NWSL, and Clubs Failed to Adequately Share Information Regarding Misconduct .. She said that she chose to come forward about her experiences and was willing to be identified in this Report to help other players. It acknowledged that the League had a "need to know," and that an "allegation that a head coach has acted inappropriately toward a player is obviously of concern to the League." After a player filed a complaint about the speech with Predmore and with the League, the club asked Benstiti to resign. The NWSL should not just list reporting channels in the Anti-Harassment Policy, but should email or otherwise share them with players, staff, and volunteers on a regular basis. 100 The Joint Investigative Team was comprised of Covington, as counsel for the NWSL, and Weil, as counsel for the NWSLPA. Another player also recalled hearing players say they "would be at [his] pool and drinking," but Riley would then "get mad" because he thought that the players should be training. Players reported that club staff living with players allowed the staff to exercise control over players' personal lives. The Red Stars's, the Dash's, and the Current's handbooks stated generally that employees were required to comply with all NWSL rules and/or policies, but other handbooks did not reference compliance with any NWSL policies. Investigative Process In most cases, witnesses were interviewed one at a time, although some interviews were conducted in small groups-for example, interviews of NWSLPA player representatives from certain clubs and of representatives from the Black Women's Player Collective, an organization founded by Black NWSL players to "advance opportunities for Black girls in sport and beyond." Despite learning this information, investigators and individuals kept apprised of the investigation, including the Thorns and Levine, did not probe further by interviewing other witnesses, requesting additional text messages or emails, or asking Riley about his relationship with Farrelly, among other things. Leading up to this meeting, Simon had been nervous, because she had been able to avoid one-on-one meetings with Holly until then. Simon shoved Holly's hands away, and in response, she felt that Holly looked at her like it was a "challenge." In January 2018, Dames informed Whisler that he could lower the pay for two staff members because those staff members would earn additional income working for Eclipse. Gulati said that he generally tells people who are considering hiring candidates to call former employers, but in this case, he was also specifically hoping that Malik would contact the Thorns. Some club policies also were less protective of players than the NWSL Anti-Harassment Policy. To think we would keep her around is insane." Players told the Joint Investigative Team that Dames threatened them, saying he would shred a player's contract or kick them off the team or out of practice if they made a mistake. Two weeks later, an NWSL employee raised a concern she had heard from U.S. Soccer employees that the potential hire was "worse than Rory Dames in terms of belittling players" in youth soccer. Non-fraternization policies need to extend beyond just head coaches as demonstrated within the report with very critical language regarding relationships between players and staff. Multiple individuals confirmed that Benstiti addressed the players to criticize their diets and weight. When the Joint Investigative Team interviewed her, Wahlke said that she did not believe the investigation was ever closed during her tenure at U.S. Soccer. Adequately Staff the NWSL HR and Legal Departments to Complete Investigations into Allegations of Misconduct Thoroughly and Promptly The League's Unstable History and Players' Fear of Collapse Two players had in fact described the same example of Dames sharing personal information, but one of the two players also provided a different example of when Dames's had shared information in a way that made her uncomfortable. . 112 Soccer." The Joint Investigative Team promptly conducted a thorough investigation and, based on the evidence, found that Wilkinson did not engage in wrongdoing or violate the Anti-Harassment Policy. On November 23, 2021, the NWSL established additional temporary protocols" for hires of "key personnel." Despite this documentary evidence, Baird told ESPN, in an interview for a documentary that aired in October 2022, that the October 2021 Athletic article was the first she ever heard of accusations of sexual abuse by Riley. He also recalled being told that players were concerned about the amount of training given to non-starters. Harrington was found to have "made inappropriate sexual and objectifying comments," and LaHue was found to have sent players inappropriate messages, the N.W.S.L. Additionally, the 2015 allegations and findings against Riley were often downplayed, including by discussing only certain aspects of the allegations and at times by using the phrase that no unlawful harassment" occurred as a way to summarize the investigative findings. The report also details Clarkson's handling of an incident in Houston back in April 2021, when stadium security questioned the boyfriend of then Chicago Red Stars defender Sarah Gorden. In October 2022, the Thorns made witnesses available for additional interviews with the Joint Investigative Team. Two players recalled an instance when Harrington, former head coach for the Utah Royals and assistant coach for the Red Stars, went out drinking with players after a game and noted that Harrington had drank to excess. As manager of the League until December 31, 2020, U.S. Soccer was tasked with providing the "NWSL with all management, governance, operational, administrative, and advisory services." According to an external review conducted by the Red Stars in 2021, players described Dames "as 'condescending', manipulative', 'aggressive', 'insulting', [and] an intimidator."" In some cases, even where clubs did have HR personnel, the clubs did not adequately inform players about the reporting channels available to them, leaving players under the impression that there were no HR personnel to whom they could report issues at the club. Three players said that they heard Dames make racist remarks, including referring to black players as 'thugs and telling one Black player that she was acting like a gang member after a game in which [she] played aggressively." During this conversation, he asked Holly, "How would you like to handle that?" Those who had known Dames for a long time acknowledged that his "behaviors ha[d] improved," but the review stressed the importance of "consider[ing] the severity of the starting point as context for growth in behavior." Flaws in Clubs' Other Reporting Channels Around August 2019, U.S. Soccer was considering Riley for the position of head coach for the USWNT, though several current and former U.S. Soccer employees stated that Riley was never in serious contention for the role. Toward the end of July 2021, Simon had coffee with Starr and told Starr that Holly had touched her inappropriately while reviewing film at the stadium. Richie Burke (Washington Spirit, Head Coach, 2019-2021) It has become more apparent that the influence and control coaches hold over players and their careers increase the risk that abuse will occur in the first placeand that if it does, players will fear the repercussions of reporting that abuse. Holly also crossed boundaries with other players by making unwanted sexual advances and overt sexual remarks to them. Gulati told the Joint Investigative Team that he surmised that he had been given legal advice not to disclose information regarding the allegations and investigation, but could not recall any specifics about that advice. A third player stated that Lines "often encourage[d] hard fouls in training, which created a dangerous and toxic team culture during training. "An independent review of practices and policies at the league and club levels-including workplace policies for each club in the league, league-mandated anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy, and processes for identifying, investigating, and enforcing Ultimately, WUSA announced it was folding on September 15, 2003, less than a week before the kickoff of the 2003 World Cup in the United States. The lack of clearly established responsibilities allowed individuals within these institutions to disclaim personal responsibility for player protection and to turn a blind eye or shift blame to other individuals and entities, while players were left exposed to further misconduct and unsafe environments. On Monday, the 43-year-old was elevated to head coach of the defending National Women's Soccer League champion Thorns, filling the void left when Wilkinson, a former Canadian international,. However, these surveys were not specifically intended to capture this information, and in multiple instances, the NWSL and U.S. Soccer failed to investigate or address comments from player surveys stating that club staff engaged in misconduct. Around 2020, the NWSLPA took on a more active and public role in advocating for player safety and well-being. Garcia emailed Shim, stating that although Garcia "did not conclude that unlawful harassment had occurred," she concluded that policy violations had taken place. Additionally, U.S. Soccer, the League, and its member clubs often failed to investigate, conducted an inadequate investigation, or otherwise failed to address misconduct reported to them. Some players said they thought the club should have been more direct with the players regarding the reason for Holly's termination, although two players stated they thought the club handled Holly's termination well and they believed the lack of information shared was to protect Simon's privacy. Players were frequently reminded of the fragility and financial instability of the League. 65, Some witnesses also expressed concern that the experiences of players of color were discounted or not taken seriously. A peek at LaHues normally busy Twitter account suggests that things began to go south sometime around June 18, when her account last posted. The 2022 Collective Bargaining Agreement retained the waiver system, but provided four weeks of severance pay for waived players. When asked to describe negative aspects of the team, one player responded, "[T]he head coach," and another responded [C]oaching staff. Aline Reis did not fully cooperate with the retaliation investigation, including by pressuring players to share favorable information with investigators. The calendar crisis explained. The club encouraged Simon to consider Players reported that playing time and favorable feedback from coaches were critical to their chances of selection for the USWNT; a lack of playing time also impacted sponsorship opportunities, without which many players had to work second jobs in the off-season to supplement their income. 14 The same day, The Athletic reported that the investigation was related to a violation of the NWSL's anti-harassment policy. While Gotham's July 2021 announcement of General Manager Alyse LaHue's termination specified that LaHue had violated "League policy," it did not specify that she had violated the League's prohibition of harassment. In January 2020, OL Reign hired Benstiti as their head coach, despite the availability of public reporting by multiple media sources that Benstiti harshly criticized Lindsey Horan's weight when he was her coach at the French club Paris Saint-Germain ("PSG") and told her she could not play until she lost weight. Garcia was relatively inexperienced in conducting sensitive investigations. A player and a former Sky Blue staff member both said that the environment at Sky Blue unraveled" when the team learned that Holly was dating Pearce Rampone. Gulati also stated that U.S. Soccer relied on the League and the clubs to develop their own policies regarding misconduct, but he did not recall ever conveying to the clubs that they were responsible for setting up these policies. Since U.S. Soccer did not adequately disseminate the findings to the NWSL, the NWSL did not take any disciplinary or corrective action toward Dames. A member of However, there have historically been no established processes at the NWSL for sharing information about misconduct on any level. One player reported that Riley, Wilkinson, and Thorns owner Merritt Paulson had a close relationship, leading to a perception that players could be traded for raising complaints against any one of the three. Rather, the allegations and findings against Riley were frequently downplayed, including by discussing only certain aspects of certain of the allegations against Riley and, as noted, by using the determination of no unlawful harassment to summarize the investigative findings. Trainings should also explain that even if there are other reasons for taking an adverse action against a player or staff member, if retaliation is a motivating factor for taking an adverse action, the adverse action is retaliatory and a violation of the Anti-Harassment Policy. Further, he told the investigator that Dames "ha[d] a hard side, that he had heard players describe Dames "as a bully," and that he had "no doubt" Dames would "ride a player during practice." One-on-one or small group socializing for non-soccer purposes between players and individuals with supervisory authority may blur the boundaries between professional and personal relationships, present concerns of improper favoritism, or leave certain players feeling isolated or excluded. Subscribers toThe Equalizer now receive 50% offtheirsubscription toThe Nextfor 24/7 coverage of womens basketball. Misconduct on any level cannot be tolerated, and clear reporting lines along with proper vetting must be enshrined in NWSL policies. In 2014, while U.S. Soccer was managing the NWSL, then-NWSL Executive Director Cheryl Bailey sent USWNT player survey results to Red Stars owner Arnim Whisler. Hammond came away from the call with the understanding that Kurtz was uncomfortable with what Riley said, and he did not recall asking follow-up questions about the circumstances or any other concerns about Riley.