The Portuguese Football Federation will create a special team, included in the Disciplinary Council, dedicate itself as a matter of urgency to the initiation of procedures initiated as a result of complaints of harassment. The news, revealed by an official FPF source, comes a day after the accusations leveled against Miguel Afonso, the suspended coach of the Famalicão women’s soccer team.
This team will be made up of members of the Disciplinary Council and the Disciplinary Instruction Commission of the Federation. This Friday, after Famalicão himself suspended Miguel Afonso “by mutual agreement”, The FPF announced an urgent disciplinary process for the technician and the consequent preventive suspension. Hours earlier, former players from Rio Ave and other clubs had filed an anonymous complaint with the organization.
Famalicão suspends Miguel Afonso, a coach accused of harassment. Federation opens urgent disciplinary file
Several players from the Rio Ave women’s senior soccer team, aged between 18 and 20, accuse his former coach, Miguel Afonso, of sexual harassment, reveals the newspaper Público this Thursday. The coach, who now leads the Famalicão women’s team, has already reacted, calling the accusations a “plan” that he will “defend.”
According to Público, who claims to have access to several written and voice messages exchanged between the athletes and the coach, Miguel Afonso sent several inappropriate messages to the players. He was even confronted by people close to the athletes. In one of the cases, the player says that she was “eliminated” in retaliation. In the other, the coach will have responded to the boyfriend of one of the victims that it was all a “joke”.
Women’s Football. Famalicão coach accused of sexual harassment by female players
One of the 19-year-old players told the newspaper that one of the first messages she received from the coach was immediately intimate: “Do you like women or men?” Afonso may have asked her during the 2020/2021 preseason. “I was wondering if we wanted to gain or lose weight. Based on our response, she invariably asked us to send her photos, but she wanted secrecy,” revealed another athlete, also 19 years old. The coach even asked one of the players for videos, saying that she wanted to see her “body movements.”
This Friday, former players from Rio Ave and other clubs sent the Portuguese Football Federation -which had already started an investigation- an anonymous and joint complaint against Miguel Afonso. According to CNN Portugal, the complaint includes evidence of sexual harassment and also evidence that Famalicão was informed of the complaints the day he announced the hiring of the coach.
“You are very embarrassed. It surprises me.” Revealed alleged messages sent by coach accused of harassment
Source: Observadora
