The NWSL was found to have “violated players' civil rights” and will pay $5M “in restitution as part of an historic settlement” following an investigation into reports of player abuse, according to Jason Anderson of USA TODAY. With that money, the league will “create a fund” for “anyone harmed by abuse or harassment from a person in a position of power.” The settlement will also include a “long list of requirements” the league will be required to follow. NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said that the requirements are “a collaborative effort between the league, NWSLPA and the attorney general.” Anderson wrote the $5M restitution fund will be “overseen” by former U.S. District Judge Barbara Jones, who was an independent member of the committee overseeing the 2022 NWSL/NWSLPA joint investigation. The settlement is a “unique development” for a league that spent the past three-plus years “overhauling a long list of processes in the name of player safety.” Having three attorney generals in positions of oversight, “as well as the significant financial penalties in place as an enforcement mechanism, is an unprecedented step” (USA TODAY, 2/5).
OVERSEEING NEXT STEPS: The AP’s Anne Peterson wrote the settlement “requires the league to maintain safeguards put in place” following the investigations released in late 2022. It also gives attorneys general Brian L. Schwalb of Washington, D.C., Letitia James of N.Y. and Kwame Raoul of Illinois the “ability to oversee changes that the NWSL made after the scandal broke, and the ability to fine the league if it fails to uphold those changes.” Among the mandated safeguards are “vetting of certain team personnel, mechanisms for players to report abuse, player access to free and unlimited counseling, access to a league safety officer and policies that prevent teams from investigating themselves” (AP, 2/5).
