Garda probe into allegations from female former soccer players

By Marie Crowe and Mark Tighe

An Garda Síochána has opened an investigation into a former senior football coach following allegations from female footballers that he made unwanted sexual advances on players in the 1990s.

A separate complaint has also been made about a second senior coach.

The women's allegations came to light during an investigation conducted jointly by RTÉ Investigates and the Sunday Independent and over a two-and-a-half-year period.

The joint investigation interviewed dozens of players. Several have spoken on camera about their experiences of alleged inappropriate sexual advances made by male coaches.

Details of their experiences are to be covered by RTÉ online over the coming days, and in a major documentary on RTÉ One television on Sunday night, as well as published in a special report in the Sunday Independent newspaper and on the Irish Independent website.

This afternoon FAI president Paul Cooke emailed members of the association’s General Assembly to alert them to the upcoming media reporting.

Mr Cooke said: "I wanted to make you aware of an upcoming media story relating to a series of allegations of historical abuse of women involved in football in the 1990s. You may see the story promoted over the coming days and I wanted to give you the reassurance that the association is treating this matter with the utmost importance and is engaging both with the women involved and the relevant authorities."

Mr Cooke said that "all safeguarding concerns that are brought to the attention of the association are dealt with as a matter of priority."

Some of those who allege they experienced unwanted sexual advances from coaches were shocked to discover during the joint investigation that former teammates claimed to have