NWSL players look to reclaim sport after scandals

PORTLAND, Ore. — After nearly a week of dealing with the fallout from accusations of sexual harassment and mistreatment leveled against a prominent coach, the players of the National Women’s Soccer League have returned to the field in hopes of reclaiming their sport.

“I think with that type of heaviness, comes the realization that things need to change. We’ve been doing a lot of grieving for our fellow players, we’ve been doing a lot of factfinding, we’ve been doing a lot of having big discussions about where this league should go and how it should look like,” Portland Thorns defender Meghan Klingenberg said. “And the one thing that keeps coming back to me, and to us, over and over and over again is that, without any say in the league, without any power, without the financial resources to protect ourselves, this will continue happening.”

The league called off games last weekend in the wake of the allegations leveled at North Carolina coach Paul Riley. Riley was fired and NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird of Greenwich resigned amid the fallout while FIFA and U.S. Soccer opened investigations.

The players resumed the season Wednesday night, but made a powerful statement at each of the three scheduled games by stopping play in the sixth minute and gathering together with coaches in a midfield circle.

The action was a show of unity, as well as a gesture of solidarity with former NWSL players Sinead Farrelly and Mana Shim, who came forward to The Athletic to recount alleged harassment and misconduct, including sexual coercion. Riley has denied the allegations.

“It’s just been a lot,” said Klingenberg, who along with her teammates wore a warm-up shirt that read “No More Silence” before a game against the Houston Dash.

It has been a tumultuous season for the top women’s professional soccer league in the United States.

Before the allegations against Riley were made public last week, the Washington Spirit fired head coach Richie Burke for violating the league’s antiharassment policy.

The OL Reign coach Farid Benstiti was asked to resign in

July for behavior at a team practice. Gotham FC dismissed general manager Alyse LaHue this summer for violation of the antiharassment policy. Racing Louisville fired coach Christy Holly in early September for reasons that have not been disclosed.

Reign defender Lauren Barnes said there’s been a reckoning in the league, which is in its ninth season: It’s time to listen to the players.

“I think that’s been the biggest issue, not necessarily how we’ve been quiet, it’s more so taking us seriously and believing us,” Barnes said.