USWNT players ‘horrified, exhausted and really angry’ after NWSL abuse report

The United States captain, Becky Sauerbrunn, has demanded root and branch reform of elite domestic soccer in North America after an independent investigation found that emotional abuse and sexual misconduct had become systemic throughout the National Women’s Soccer League.

“It’s time for those in authority to start being accountable and make players in this league feel safe,” said the 37-year-old Portland Thorns defender after she and her US teammates arrived in London to prepare for Friday’s high-profile friendly against England at Wembley. “The players are not doing well. We are horrified, exhausted and really, really angry.

“We’re heartbroken and frustrated. We’re angry it took a third-party investigation and over 200 people sharing their trauma to get to the point we’re at right now. Passion for the game has been taken away from players because of this abuse, we need to bring that joy and accessibility back to the game. The executives perpetuating this should be gone.”

The investigation, commissioned by the US Soccer Federation and conducted by former US deputy attorney general Sally Yates, was launched in the wake of allegations made last year against for the former Portland Thorns and North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley. Although Riley, who is English, denies those allegations the report Yates published on Monday found that verbal and emotional abuse, as well as sexual misconduct was rife across multiple teams.

Yates and her team spoke to about 200 players in the North American top tier and soon discovered that the problem extended far beyond the allegations made not merely against Riley but a handful of other leading coaches. Investigators found that such problems were exacerbated by leading club and league