Sexual misconduct at the Women’s World Cup.
According to a report by the British newspaper The Guardian on May 5, Bruce Mwape, 63, head coach of the Zambian national team at the Women’s World Cup, was seen touching a player’s breasts during training on May 28.
An eyewitness said, “It’s not appropriate for a coach to touch a player’s breasts. However, fearing that the team would be disturbed, I filed a formal complaint against Mwape with FIFA after the group stage.”
A FIFA spokesperson said: “We take allegations of misconduct seriously. We are currently investigating the allegations.” Zambia suffered back-to-back 0-5 losses to Japan and Spain. Zambia picked up their first win with a 3-1 victory over Costa Rica, but failed to advance to the round of 16 with a 1-2 record.
Worse still, Mwape had already been accused of sexually assaulting the female players he coached on numerous occasions before the World Cup. He allegedly blackmailed players into sleeping with him under the pretext of earning a call-up to the national team, including some under-17 players.
A female player, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “When the coach asks you to sleep with him, you have no choice but to accept. It’s a common occurrence in our team.” Bidan Mwape is not the only person involved in sexual assault cases in Zambia, with officials from the country’s soccer federation, referees, and others also allegedly involved.
“It has nothing to do with me,” Mwape said. The rumors that I sexually assaulted players are false,” he said, denying all allegations.바카라
This is not the first time sexual assault allegations have surfaced in Zambia. Last year, Zambia Football Association president Andrew Kamanga dismissed allegations of sexual assault in the country as “old news” when police and FIFA launched an investigation.
The ZAF allegedly turned a blind eye to Mwape’s crimes as the national team advanced to the World Cup, despite already knowing about the sexual assaults of players. Zambia qualified for the Women’s World Cup for the first time this year. Zambia also withdrew from the Africa Cup of Nations last year following a sex scandal.
