Soccer-Courage was unaware of allegations of sexual misconduct against coach, owner says

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North Carolina Courage owner Steve Malik said the team only became aware of allegations of sexual harassment and coercion against former coach Paul Riley when they were first reported last week.

The weekend’s National Women’s Football League (NWSL) games have been postponed after The Athletic on Thursday https://theathletic.com/2857633/2021/09/30/this-guy-has-a-pattern-amid -institutional-failure- the former-nwsl-players-accuse-prominent-coach-of-sexual-coercion described Riley’s allegations of sexual coercion and misconduct, which led Courage to back-to-back championships in 2018 and 2019. Riley was then fired by Courage and the League.

The Portland Thorns said Monday they terminated Riley’s contract in 2015 after receiving a complaint about their then-coach and sharing what they learned in their own investigation with the NWSL. He was then hired by the late Western New York Flash. In a statement on Wednesday, Malik said he was aware of an investigation into Riley’s behavior with the Thorns in 2015 he was “assured (Riley) was in good standing” during the due diligence conducted when he purchased the Flash in 2017.

The Courage was founded in 2017 after Malik acquired the franchise rights to Flash. “During his employment with Courage, we had no knowledge of any allegations of sexual harassment or coercion. When we learned of the horrific allegations in recent weeks, we took them seriously and immediately fired Mr. Riley. “Malik said.

“There is no place for such abuse in our society or in our sport, and it will never be tolerated by the North Carolina Courage organization.” Athletic said Riley denied “most” of the allegations detailed in his report. Attempts to reach Riley for comment were unsuccessful.

The NWSL did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The allegations have given rise to investigations by NWSL, US Soccer and FIFA. The Thorns said there had been “a systemic failure in professional women’s football.”

Football Australia has announced a “complaints handling procedure” in place after retired striker Lisa De Vanna said she was the victim of sexual assault and harassment during her career. The NWSL was scheduled to resume on Wednesday, with North Carolina Courage taking on Racing Louisville at home, NJ / NY Gotham FC facing Washington Spirit and the Portland Thorns playing Houston Dash.

(This story was not edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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