An independent investigation into the scandals that erupted in the National Women’s Soccer League last season, found emotional abuse and sexual misconduct were systemic in the sport, impacting multiple teams, coaches, and players. The NWSL scandal is a number of abuse allegations in national teams outside of the U.S. They stated an Athletic investigation into the North Carolina Courage, and two dozen players from the Venezuela Women’s national team, signed a statement saying that they faced “abuse and harassment, physical, psychological and sexual” from former national team head coach, Kenneth Zseremeta.
After that, there was two other Astalian women’s national soccer teams that spoke up about them facing the same thing, like abuse, on their national team
The NWSL had also suspended two head coaches during the 2022 NWSL season under protective policies.
The Portland Timbers and Thorns owner Merritt Paulson, and general manger Gavin Wilkinson, had to step away from the Thorns and on October 5, 2022. Wilkinson and Golub were eventually fired from the club altogether.
After seeing all of these reports, a journalist named Sally Jenkins, wrote a column in the Washington Post about the United States Center for SafeSport, saying that SafeSport is “abuser-friendly” and a sham. She also called the Safe sport “a false front … little more than another coverup operation, a litigation-avoidance ploy and bottomless pit into which to dump complaints and disguise inaction”.

U.S. Soccer commissioned the investigation by Yates, came forward with allegations of harassment and sexual coercion, dating back a decade, involving former coach Paul Riley. Riley then tried denying the allegation, and then was fired as the head coach for the North Carolina Courage. After that the NWSL Commissioner, Lisa Baird, stepped down. This problem was widespread, and 5 of 10 head coaches that were in the NWSL last season have been fired or either stepped down, amid allegations of misconduct.
They then started an investigation, aimed towards 3 coaches; The previously mentioned, Paul Riley, Christy Holly of Racing Louisville, and Rory Dames of the Chicago Red Stars. They started an investigation In April 2021 encounter between Holly and a player named Erin Simon, who now plays in Europe, and found that Holly invited her to watch game film with him, and allegedly told her that for every pass she messed up, he was going to touch her. Simon told investigators Holly “pushed his hands down her pants and up her shirt.” Simon, now with Leicester City, said too many athletes suffer in silence because they are afraid they won’t be heard, And this is one of the big reasons why none of the athletes are speaking up for themselves when this kind of abuse from coaches or higher ups happens.
Farrelly said the harassment she experienced began in 2011 when she was a player with the Philadelphia Independence of the Women’s Professional Soccer league and Riley was her coach, however she told The Athletic that the abuse by Riley continued, when she was with the Portland Thorns in 2014 and 2015, and she later found out she was not the only one. Shim, a former Thorns player, also said she experienced harassment, and now both players are no longer playing in the NWSL. The Thorns then investigated Riley in 2015 while he was with the team and reported the findings to the league. They did not renew his contract, but did not make the reasons public.