November 13 – The sexual harassment scandal pervading public life has spilled over into football with Hope Solo, the best-known goalkeeper in the women’s game, making accusations against none other than former FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
Blatter, currently serving a ban from the game because of that infamous “disloyal payment” deal with Michel Platini, has become the latest high-profile public figure to face allegations which he has described as “ridiculous.”
Solo, who has made 202 appearances in 16 years for the United States, claims Blatter, now 81, molested her at FIFA’s Ballon d’Or awards ceremony back in January 2013.
Her claims were made to the Portuguese newspaper Expresso during an event in Lisbon to discuss equal pay and women’s equality.
Solo, 36, said the incident happened just before she was presenting the FIFA women’s world player of the year award to striker Amy Wambach, her compatriot in the American team that had won the gold medal at the London Olympics.
“I had Sepp Blatter grab my ass,” claimed Solo. “It was at the Ballon d’Or, right before I went on stage.”
Blatter, via his spokesman, immediately denied it. “This allegation is ridiculous,” said a statement made to agencies.
Back in 2004 Blatter raised more than a few eyebrows when he suggested that female players should wear “tighter shorts” to make the women’s game more appealing.
Solo says the issue of sexual harrassment is “rampant” in women’s football.
“I’ve seen it throughout my entire career,” she said. “It’s not just in Hollywood. I’ve seen it not just with coaches, I’ve seen it with trainers, doctors, and our press officers. I’ve seen it among players in the locker room. I don’t know why more players don’t speak out against it.”
“I’m actually very disappointed with the women who haven’t spoken about it in the sports world … I wish more women, especially in football, would speak against it, about the experiences, because some of those people still work [in football].”
Expanding on the alleged incident with Blatter, Solo told the Guardian newspaper: “I was in shock and completely thrown off. I had to quickly pull myself together to present my team-mate with the biggest award of her career and celebrate with her in that moment, so I completely shifted my focus to Abby.”
“While in this instance it was Sepp Blatter, who was the most powerful man in football at the time, sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour are rampant at every level in women’s sport and it needs to stop,” she added.
The outspoken Solo, plagued by controversy throughout her career, has not played for her country since last year’s Olympics in Rio because of a shoulder injury and a suspension imposed by the US Soccer Federation for accusing Sweden of being as “a bunch of cowards” for the defensive way they knocked out the USA in the quarter-finals, a comment she later retracted.
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