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Kurtz said she cried on the phone, telling Hammond that her request was not about playing time-she said she did not feel comfortable being around Riley and told Hammond that Riley had called her chubby." The Joint Investigative Team requested an interview of Angie and Chris Long, and Angie Long sat for an interview. So did the message of an adult brand backing a sport that has long marketed first to kids and families. In a Tweet late Friday afternoon, the National Women's Soccer League club announced that LaHue had, as of July 9 - a week ago today - was no longer employed by the team. Wilkinson told the Joint Investigative Team that he discussed Riley's termination with Lines, though he was uncertain whether Lines had already known Riley was terminated, rather than simply not retained. A different player recounted that after a tournament, her team received a "ton of alcohol to have a party." No reason to keep her, she is poison at this point. However, Baird had received and reviewed Shim's complaint to the NWSL in March 2021, to which Shim attached her September 2015 complaint detailing sexual misconduct by Riley. Riley-who is around 15 years older than Farrelly-began lowering professional boundaries with Farrelly during that time, including by focusing his attention on her during nights out drinking with the team, asking probing personal questions, and telling her she was "beautiful." Clubs' inconsistent responses to player-staff relationships left players confused about whether the NWSL prohibited such relationships. One player also recalled that while Burke hired a sports psychologist to work with the players, Burke thought there was something wrong with the players and said the players were "all headcases." Two players described Dames's mood shifts as "a cycle of abuse." O'Connor noted "there was definitely acknowledgement" by Holly. These biases are central to any evaluation of misconduct in the League.. According to Temares's and Smoot's accounts, neither had the information necessary to share that others in Sky Blue leadership were aware of complaints that Holly screamed at and verbally abused players. Describing Dames, a Red Stars player stated that a "huge day-to-day struggle was the fear-what was the day going to bring?" Neither the Flash nor the Courage-the NWSL clubs that employed Riley after he was terminated from the Thorns-received a copy of the Thorns's 2015 investigative report detailing Riley's misconduct. This is too much. After a player filed a complaint about the speech with Predmore and with the League, the club asked Benstiti to resign. Anonymous results from an annual NWSL player survey conducted in 2014, and described in greater detail below, also indicated similar misconduct by Riley. Hendrix also attended the meeting. At a higher level, the joint investigation makes a greater attempt to identify and define problematic everyday behaviors like emotional abuse, at times noting that even the players they interviewed struggle to define the lines between that and "tough coaching" because many of them grew up with so much of the latter. Players were not in control of their own movement between teams. Benstiti did not respond to the Joint Investigative Team's request to speak with him. On a third team, a player described her coach threatening players with waiver after the coach heard that those players had questioned decisions he made during training. Instead, it stated only that [e]mployees, without fear of retaliation, have the responsibility to bring any form of intimidation, threats, and sexual or other harassment to the attention of any member of management." The League should consider requiring that clubs certify that they have revised their anti-harassment policies to meet the baseline requirements of the League's Anti-Harassment Policy and that they have disseminated their policies and the League's policy to all staff and players. In 2020 and 2021, James Clarkson emailed club staff, including the club president, in an effort to develop a mental health program to support players. Witnesses also reported that the coach attempted to get another player to dance with him and told her he did not care about her sexuality. ii The new report expands on many of those topics, though only relating specifically to occurrences in the NWSL era. Gotham FC fires general manager Alyse LaHue - The Athletic Some players of color reported they did not feel they could report racially insensitive and offensive conduct. Players recounted numerous instances in which club staff made inappropriate sexual and objectifying comments. Two prior leagues have." For example, in one incident, Clarkson likened an injured player's stride to that of a "lame horse," and laughed when she jokingly responded, "So should I shoot myself?" Nevertheless, she decided to dress for the game because she did not think she would get any playing time. Consultants who spoke with players at one club observed after their conversation that they had concerns about the club environment which were "exacerbated by the recent suicides of former soccer players, observed stigma around mental health and seeking help, and seemingly limited suicide prevention practices." Another player The NWSL should encourage clubs to involve players in interview and hiring processes where feasible and to seek feedback from a range of players who are familiar with prospective At first, she thought the offers were "nice" because she did not "know what the boundaries [were]." The latest report also focuses on racism and microaggressions in a way that the Yates report did not. Please sign in below. In the player survey, Thorns players anonymously commented that Riley "ripped/yelled at players in a hurtful, non-productive way," was "verbally abussive [sic]," and would "call [players] dumb, stupid, slow, idiotic, retarded, we have no balls, we will never be better than the average 16 year old boy, worthless." At the end of the meeting, Simon was informed that the club planned to fire Holly that night. The Courage understood Riley had denied this allegation. Multiple players also said that Dames commented on players' attractiveness. Burke told the Joint Investigative Team that he was a demanding" coach and acknowledged that he could be "profane" at times, but he adamantly denied that his behavior was abusive toward players. LaHue was appointed as general manager of NJ/NY Gotham FC (formerly Sky Blue FC) in September 2019, and has been credited with playing a major role in turning the club around, both on and off the . 47, The stated purpose of the USSF Dames Investigation was "to understand the experience of the players and provide U.S. Soccer legal advice with respect to whether the alleged misconduct by Dames, to the extent that it occurred, is acceptable from the head coach of a National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) team from the perspective of U.S. The calendar crisis explained. He frequently texted Shim, even though she did not always reply, sometimes asking her to come to his apartment or turning the conversation to her sexual orientation. When one person holds both coaching roles and general manager roles, players have fewer avenues to report misconduct and may fear that reporting misconduct will lead to retaliation. According to one player, this staff member began dating the player mid-season. NWSL Draft: Sky Blue FC makes trades, returns Jennifer Cudjoe At first he told her he admired her fitness and her "soccer body," but then shifted to making other comments about her body, including calling her "sexy." She was hired that May as vice president. Players Lacked Clear Guidance Regarding What Constituted Misconduct .. She later described feeling "powerless" and "scared to say no." Communicate Reporting Channels Regularly Club owners, coaches, and general managers from Utah Royals FC, OL Reign, NJ/NY Gotham FC, the Washington Spirit, Racing Louisville FC, and later, the Chicago Red Stars departed their clubs following reports of misconduct towards players, including overtly racist conduct, verbal and emotional abuse, sexual harassment, and sexual assault. Burke (who did not know at the time of her conversation with Baird that Farrelly and Shim had already emailed their complaints to the NWSL) said Baird did not seem to indicate recognition in response to Burke's warning. 125, The N.W.S.L. Prior to joining the NWSL, Riley had coached Farrelly on the Long Island Fury and on the Philadelphia Independence in 2012 and 2013, respectively. It looks like I'm going to have to do that again." Riley told her he would do whatever he could do for her, adding, "You know I love you." Despite this purpose, neither the summary nor the conclusion of the investigative report provided a determination as to whether Dames's conduct was acceptable. In deciding whom to name, the Joint Investigative Team considered both the need for public accountability as well as the potential impact on player confidentiality. 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. It was not until June 2021, when Benstiti gave a speech in which he criticized players' diets, that the club took action. The banned coaches engaged in sexual misconduct, verbal and emotional abuse and made sexist and racist remarks to players, a 14-month investigation found. Anti-harassment training offered by the NWSL should clearly instruct staff that electronic communications, including text messages, WhatsApp messages, and emails, must comply with, and are subject to, the Anti-Harassment Policy. She did recall discussing one of the transactions with Williams and that he offered a soccer-related reason for the transaction. Holly pulled Pearce Rampone from the starting lineup following the fight, but once they resolved their conflict, he put her back into the lineup. Red Stars General Manager Steps Down - Hot Time In Old Town Racing Louisville did not appropriately respond to players' reports about Holly's conduct as the club's head coach. While the emails between Whisler, Bailey, Flynn, and Gulati obtained by the Joint Investigative Team do not reflect this, Whisler said that he attempted, but was unable, to get more information from U.S. Soccer on the comments regarding Dames or direction on how to address them. She also emphasized that she was focused on getting a balanced" perspective from interviewees; in other Farrelly reported to the Joint Investigative Team that she did not go into the interview with Garcia planning to disclose that history and instead planned to respond to the specific questions asked. Nearly every player who spoke to U.S. Soccer's investigator said that Dames targeted certain players, criticizing them more often and with more severity than others. The player felt that the owner was suggesting that she was selfish for even raising the point. For example, one staff member recalled hearing Holly call a Sky Blue player "lazy" and "dumb." D. Accounts differ about what happened next. The 2022 Anti-Harassment Policy further explains that [p]rohibited retaliation could include any of the following actions if taken because of a player/employee's involvement in Protected Activity: termination of employment, demotion, transfer to less desirable position, suspension, failure to hire or consider for hire, failure to give equal consideration in making employment decisions, failure to make employment recommendations impartially, adversely affecting working conditions, or otherwise denying any employment benefit." The report states, Multiple individuals emphasized the critical insight that can be gained by speaking with persons knowledgeable about the candidate.. 83, required NWSL vetting, and this person raised concerns that clubs may not have been submitting all hires for screening. After Holly learned that a different starting player had complained about his behavior to club leadership, he demoted her to training with reserve players. 5. Riley grew bolder in making sexual advances over time, and Farrelly reported to The Athletic and to the Joint Investigative Team that they had sexual intercourse after Riley went out drinking with the team following a loss at an away game. The day after the player spoke to the NWSL about her complaint, Dames texted Whisler that he was planning on waiving her. Comments further stated that Dames made "sexist, racist, abusive, and other prejudicial remarks at players." Riley went on to be named head coach for two other NWSL clubs, the Western New York Flash and the Courage, in 2016 and 2017, respectively. The report identifies several instances in which basic criminal records checks would come back clean, but where reference checks would have revealed character issues regarding potential hires. . Background. Dames's behavior to U.S. Soccer's investigator. It stated that Riley danced with Shim at the apartment and that Shim and Farrelly kissed that night, which Shim claimed (and another player corroborated) was done to avoid the suicide mile. Some owners regularly analogized the players to children or daughters, which both staff and players alike found unprofessional. The clubs should ask questions about players' experiences in the NWSL generally, their experiences with specific coaches and other club staff, and their reasons for departing. To the extent that Racing Louisville has asserted that the severance agreement was intended to address Simon's confidentiality concerns, the non-disparagement provision was far more limiting on the club than what was necessary to protect her confidentiality. b) Retaliation by Amanda Cromwell and Sam Greene The Joint Investigative Team also reviewed documents collected from the League relating to League organizational structure, policies, and trainings regarding harassment, abuse, and discrimination, as well as documents related to complaints and reports of misconduct and investigations into those reports of misconduct, and communications between League personnel. 29, In a written summary prepared for the Joint Investigative Team, the Courage stated that Chief Soccer Officer Curt Johnson and Malik vetted Riley, including by speaking with leadership at the Flash and with some of Riley's players at the Flash, who provided positive feedback. Even before the Athletic article detailing Riley's misconduct was published, two Courage players had made complaints-one directly to the NWSL and one to the Courage (which was later reported to the NWSL)-that Riley had made inappropriate comments about players' weight and that he had required a player to report her weight to him daily for more than two months. Farrelly told the Joint Investigative Team that the announcement "solidified" her decision not to tell her own story, noting the hiring was "extra validation that Shim's allegations did not seem to matter. Both before and after the NWSL implemented its Non-Fraternization Policy in 2018, clubs responded inconsistently to player-staff relationships. In addition, players provided specific examples of Dames commenting on players' personal appearances, making racially insensitive comments, and controlling players. At the start of the 2022 season, the NWSL consisted of 12 teams: Angel City FC, the Red Stars, the Dash, Kansas City Current, Gotham, the Courage, OL Reign, the Pride, the Thorns, Racing Louisville, San Diego Wave FC, and the Spirit. Former NWSL President Amanda Duffy recalled hearing that Holly stepped down and believed his relationship with Pearce Rampone "may have been part of [the reason]" that he left. . Alyse LaHue, General Manager of the NJ/NY Gotham FC Women's Football Team Lisa Ferkul, Director of Hockey Sponsorship at Scotiabank Andrew Sutherland, Vice President of Marketing, Creative and Original Content at Sportsnet What were the takeaways?