Former Soccer Players Speak out on Sexual Assault

Four distinct British police forces are looking into more than 20 allegations of sexual abuse in junior soccer that were brought forward by former teammates who said they had been molested by coaches as young players. England’s Football Association confirmed on Sunday that it, too, was investigating the allegations.

Kate Gallafent, a leading expert in child protection, will assist with the internal review of the accusations. The review is expected to help reveal just how much England’s Football Association knew of the allegations, whether they had done anything to stop it, and whether other clubs were aware of it.

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According to Gordon Taylor, the chief executive of Britain’s Professional Footballers’ Association, more than 20 former players had made allegations that involved up to seven different clubs.

The players making the accusations seem to have been emboldened by Andy Woodward’s recent allegations of sexual abuse suffered at the hands of Barry Bennell in the 1990s. Bennell, a convicted pedophile, worked as a youth coach for the Crewe-Alexandra team, which Woodward was a part of, in the 1980s and 1990s.

Since then, more players have admitted to being molested by Bennell and others. On Sunday, Anthony Hughes, who played for England at the 1993 World Youth Championships, became the latest player to point to Bennell, while Paul Stewart, who used to play for Liverpool and Spurs, has pointed to another coach.

As this troubling information is revealed, some have even suggested that a “pedophile ring” may have been operating in the region at that time.

“There were people at those clubs who had a duty to look after boys coming through their system,” Jason Dunford, a youth team player with Manchester City told the BBC.

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As more information is revealed by former victims, the possibility of a ring seems less far-fetched. Indeed, after only being in operation for a few hours, the hotline set up by the Football Association and the NSPCC, an organization focused on child protection, was flooded with more than 50 callers alleging they had been assaulted.

As of last week, Northumbria and Hampshire police also opened investigations into alleged sexual assaults in those regions of the country.