Ireland manager has been accused of body-shaming, attempts to excessively control her players' diets and failing to co-operate with investigation - which found widespread misconduct in NWSL; she says "cannot allow my name to be attached to such false accusations" and thanks FAI for support
Monday 19 December 2022 20:05, UK
Republic of Ireland Women head coach Vera Pauw has denied "every allegation" made about her in an investigation by the National Women's Soccer League regarding her time in charge of Houston Dash.
Pauw, who was head coach of Houston Dash in 2018, has been accused of body-shaming, attempts to excessively control her players' diets and failing to co-operate with the investigation - which found widespread misconduct in the NWSL.
The allegations in the report follow on from the release of an independent investigation in October, which found abuse and misconduct had "become systemic" in the NWSL, the United States' top-flight women's league.
The Dutch coach says she "cannot allow my name to be attached to such false accusations" and thanked the Football Association of Ireland for their support in the matter.
In an statement released on Friday, Pauw said: "To suggest I would body shame any human being, footballer or not, is an insult to my personal values and to my behaviour as a coach and I cannot allow this claim to go unchallenged.
"I want to refute every allegation made against me from my time at Houston Dash. Player welfare has always been of the utmost importance to me throughout my career.
"Nutrition is a hugely important aspect of professional football and my advice has always been to look after their nutritional needs and their health - and to always seek the advice of medical experts.
"I would like to thank all those who have spoken out in support of me since these allegations were made public on Wednesday evening.
"I will continue to defend myself against all of these claims. I have spent my entire career fighting for my players and now I must fight for myself. I am extremely frustrated that I have been targeted in such a disappointing manner."
Houston Dash apologised to players past and present after Wednesday's release of the investigation, which also alleged that Pauw's successor, James Clarkson, had been insensitive to his players' mental health.
Pauw has been frustrated by the handling of the investigation and its release, which the FIA claims she was not warned about prior to its publication.
"I would like the express my disappointment at the manner in which this investigation was conducted, the way I was treated when I tried to engage with the investigation and the lack of engagement around the publication of the report and statements to the media," she added.
"The report suggests that I did not co-operate with the investigation team, which is untrue.
"I accepted an invitation to join a video call, on September 29th, on which there were four people and me. I asked to record the call but they said that this could not happen and they refused to answer any of my questions before they ended the call.
"I then wrote a 13-page letter to outline my experience of my time at Houston and offered to re-engage with them but they never responded."
Following the release of the report, the FAI released their own statement backing Pauw.
"[The FAI] is aware of an NWSL/NWSLPA joint report into historical events within its own league in which Republic of Ireland Women's National Team Manager Vera Pauw has been referenced.
"Neither the FAI or Vera had sight of this report before it was published and we note that Vera has already expressed her views to the authors of the report.
"The FAI continues to support Vera and her team as they prepare for the upcoming FIFA Women's World Cup in 2023."
