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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Sport
Tom Lutz

Report finds sexual misconduct and emotional abuse is ‘systemic’ in US women’s soccer

Players stop the match during the first-half of a NWSL match between NJ/NY Gotham FC and the Washington Spirit last year in protest at abuse in socce
Players stop the match during the first-half of a NWSL game between NJ/NY Gotham FC and the Washington Spirit last year in protest at abuse in soccer. Photograph: Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports

A year-long independent investigation into abuse and sexual misconduct in women’s soccer in the US has delivered a damning verdict.

“Our investigation has revealed a league in which abuse and misconduct-verbal and emotional abuse and sexual misconduct-had become systemic, spanning multiple teams, coaches, and victims,” the report read. “Abuse in the NWSL is rooted in a deeper culture in women’s soccer, beginning in youth leagues, that normalizes verbally abusive coaching and blurs boundaries between coaches and players.”

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