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The American Football Federation announced Sunday evening that it had retained the services of Sally Q. Yates to investigate “allegations of abusive behavior and sexual misconduct in professional women’s football.” Yates is best known for her tenure as Assistant United States Attorney General under President Barack Obama, as well as a brief stint as Acting Attorney General under President Donald Trump.
In a statement, the USSF said Yates would be given “full autonomy” in its investigation, which will begin immediately.
Hours earlier, the NWSL announced the formation of a committee to oversee the league following the resignation of Commissioner Lisa Baird, as well as a number of inquiries and reviews following Athleticism’s reporting allegations of sexual coercion by former North Carolina Courage head coach Paul Riley, as well as the subsequent inaction of the NWSL teams and the league office.
The new committee, made up of Amanda Duffy, executive vice president of Orlando Pride (formerly president of the NWSL), as well as Kansas City co-owner Angie Long, and Sophie Sauvage, representative of the board of directors of the NWSL. ‘OL Reign / OL Groupe, will lead the league’s front office on a temporary basis. According to Sunday’s statement, “A global search for a permanent commissioner is underway.”
The NWSL also announced that it had retained the services of the law firm Covington & Burling to oversee a number of investigations, led by Amanda Kramer, former United States Deputy Attorney at the Office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Kramer, according to the league, “will lead the company team and report directly to the newly formed executive committee of the NWSL board of directors.”
These investigations include the reopening of the original investigation described in Thursday’s report to Athleticism, which was conducted by Portland Thorns FC in response to a September 16, 2015 complaint filed by Mana Shim regarding Riley, who was then head coach of the Thorns. The reopening of the investigation will also include “a review of the circumstances surrounding his departure from Portland Thorns FC, and his subsequent hiring by Western New York Flash and North Carolina Courage.”
The league will also conduct a review of all historical investigative reports related to discrimination, harassment or abuse in the NWSL, and said investigations will be reopened or a new investigation will be launched if deemed necessary. .
Covington & Burling will also oversee a review of policies at the team and club level, and the implementation of more comprehensive policies to ensure “systematic, transparent and effective enforcement of any issue of harassment or conduct at the workplace. job”.
The league said those first steps were taken after the NWSL and USWNT player associations provided comments. In addition, the NWSL has now provided an anonymous reporting mechanism to players and staff (current or former) through RealResponse.
“We understand that we need to undertake an important systematic and cultural transformation to address the issues necessary to become the type of league that NWSL players and their fans deserve and to regain the trust of both,” read a statement attributed to the three members of the new Executive Committee. “We are committed to doing just that and recognize that it will not happen overnight, but only through vigilance over time.”
(Photo: Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
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