FAI ‘shocked and appalled’ by Garda investigation into sexual harassment allegations

FAI officials are “shocked and appalled” by allegations of sexual abuse made by women involved in Irish football in the 1990s.

The allegations, mostly made by former members of the Republic of Ireland senior team, have prompted an investigation by An Garda Síochána.

The allegations relate to three men, well-known in Irish football, one of whom held a senior position within the FAI at the time.

Interviews with dozens of former players will be released over the weekend, and will be featured on RTÉ’s Prime Time Investigates: Girls In Green on Sunday evening. An RTÉ statement on Thursday said the programme would reveal “widespread allegations of inappropriate behaviour by women towards Irish football coaches” and “unwanted sexual advances”.

The men involved deny any wrongdoing. In a statement, the FAI praised the “tremendous courage of the women in coming forward and encourages anyone involved in Irish football to report any concerns they may have.”

Sports Minister Catherine Martin called the allegations “very shocking” in a statement on Thursday and said: “I have been assured that the FAI is engaging and co-operating with the Gardaí in their investigation into these allegations, taking an athlete-centric approach.”

“I appreciate the courage of the women who agreed to this.”

The timing of the accusation has stunned the FAI hierarchy ahead of a meeting of the General Assembly and FAI staff tomorrow on Monday.

The senior women’s national team is preparing for European Championship qualifying matches against England next Friday and France on Tuesday next week

FAI President Paul Cooke contacted all members of the General Assembly yesterday to share some disturbing news.

“I wanted to let you know about an upcoming media article regarding a series of allegations of abuse against women involved in football in the 1990s,” he said.

‘You will be able to see the promoted story in the coming days. I would like to assure you that the Association takes this matter very seriously and is cooperating with both the women involved and the relevant authorities.

“All safety-related issues brought to the Association’s attention are treated as a priority,” he added.

At the same time, interim CEO David Courell issued a similar statement to FAI employees, stressing: “As always, we are here to support all employees.

“If any of these stories have affected you or you would like to raise any concerns, please contact me, Aoife (Rafferty) and Kirsten (Pakes).”

Rafferty is the FAI’s Human Resources Director and Pakes is the FAI’s Child Welfare and Safeguarding Manager. The FAI has put the Safeguarding Awareness Campaign on the agenda for tomorrow’s General Assembly meeting in Dublin.

Since April 2017, when the ‘Liberty Belles’ defied the old FAI hierarchy, the Association has been committed to ensuring that the well-being of women serving internationally is a priority.

The claims against the FAI come as the cash-strapped association desperately tries to repair relations with the government following two chaotic appearances at Leinster House in the past seven months.

There has been no senior manager for the men’s team since November following the expiration of Stephen Kenny’s contract, and there has been no CEO or director of marketing and communications since April, following the departures of Jonathan Hill and Louise Cassidy respectively.

Media enquiries regarding this latest controversy have been directed to Gareth Maher, Communications Manager for the Irish Women’s National Team.

The Irish players, who will be on media duty on Monday, can expect to be asked to comment on the accusations.

Former Ireland international Sinéad Farrelly revealed in 2021 that she and other female players had been subjected to sexual harassment by their coach Paul Riley, who was later banned from the US Women’s National Soccer League for life in 2023.