US Soccer Announces Player Safety Program

US Soccer has introduced a safe soccer program that requires a comprehensive screening of those involved in the sport as the association continues its investigation into misconduct by coaches in the National Women’s Soccer League.

The Safe Soccer program announced on Monday aims to overhaul the criteria for participating in the sport from youth level to the professional leagues. It includes security training, background checks and annual reviews.

The rollout will begin with a pilot program involving U.S. soccer employees, but will eventually reach “every participant in the soccer ecosystem,” the association announced. The process is expected to take several years.

“We want to make sure we’re getting bad actors out of our game. But we also want to make sure we encourage, motivate and reward people who do the right thing. Honestly, in a perfect world, that would affect every single adult in our game,” said Danielle Slaton, former US national team defenseman and chair of US Soccer’s Yates Implementation Committee.

“The challenge is how we do that, and I think a lot of that will depend on the (participant safety) task force, on our membership and on all of us working to pull in the same direction on that front . added Slaton.

Both US Soccer and the NWSL pledged to implement the recommendations of two damning reports of systemic abuse and misconduct in the country’s top professional league.

US Soccer released the results of its investigation in October, which was led by former acting US Attorney General Sally Q. Yates. A separate report commissioned by the NWSL and its players’ union was released in December. Both sides want to expand and take measures to ensure the safety of players in the new year.

Among the Yates report’s recommendations was the requirement that teams report misconduct by coaches to the league and USSF to ensure coaches are not allowed to transfer between teams. It also called for a timely investigation into allegations of abuse and meaningful screening of participants.

Mana Shim and former NWSL colleague Sinead Farrelly came forward in 2021 with allegations of harassment and sexual assault against longtime league coach Paul Riley. He was among five of the league’s ten coaches to be fired or resigned this year following allegations of misconduct. He denied the allegations.

Shim now chairs the USSF’s Participant Safety Taskforce, which aims to implement protective measures across football in the United States. Shannon Boxx, a US Soccer Hall of Famer, is also on the task force.

The Implementation Committee has proposed changes to the association’s professional league standards for all affiliated leagues, including Major League Soccer, the NWSL, the United Soccer League and others.

Proposed changes include banning the use of non-disclosure and non-denigration agreements that hide information about allegations of abuse.

The standards would also require teams to appoint a player safety officer, provide education and training on abuse and misconduct, and provide annual safety reports to US soccer.

These changes must be approved by the US Soccer Board of Directors, which meets in March.

The Yates report sets out 12 general recommendations “aimed at preventing future abuse, holding wrongdoers accountable, improving transparency, addressing safety in youth football and fostering a professional environment where players are treated with respect.” .” US Soccer has either implemented or acted on the recommendations. The association also works closely with the NWSL to implement reforms.

“As we’ve said from the start, this remains of the highest priority for our federation and we strive to clean up our sport and make things better,” Slaton said. “And the committee is committed to continuing to grow and develop and to support the task force that will be led by Mana Shim going forward, which it has been and will continue to be as we remain truly committed to this work. This is not a one time thing. This isn’t a committee thing that we put a stamp on and say we’re done with this work. We know that there is still a lot to be done.”