Vera Pauw: Republic of Ireland manager denies body shaming allegation
- Published
Vera Pauw guided the Republic of Ireland to the 2023 World Cup next summer - the country's first major tournament
Republic of Ireland women's manager Vera Pauw says "false" allegations she body shamed players in the USA in 2018 are "an insult to my personal values".
A report on misconduct in the National Women's Soccer League said Pauw, then at Houston Dash, "shamed players for their weight" and "attempted to exert excessive control over eating habits".
"To suggest I would body shame any human being, footballer or not, is an insult to my personal values," said Pauw.
"I cannot allow this claim to go unchallenged."
A joint investigation unit for the NWSL and its players association (NWSLPA) released the findings on Wednesday.
Houston Dash apologised to their players past and present affected by alleged misconduct, external by head coach James Clarkson and Pauw, who was in charge of the team in 2018.
Pauw, who took over as Republic manager in 2019 and guided the country to the World Cup finals next summer, released a statement on Friday and said she wants 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 to players has always been to look after their nutritional needs and their health - and to always seek the advice of medical experts."
Speaking to RTE later on Friday, Pauw said she may consider legal action in an attempt to clear her name.
Cooperation allegations 'untrue'
The report added that Pauw refused to co-operate with the investigation but provided "a written denial of what she suspected were the allegations against her".
The 59-year-old said any suggestions she did not cooperate with the investigation team are "untrue".
"I accepted an invitation to join a video call, on 29 September, on which there were four people and me," she added.
"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.
"I would like to 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."
The Football Association of Ireland released a statement on Thursday backing Pauw and the Dutch manager and said "the FAI continues to support Vera and her team as they prepare for the upcoming FIFA Women's World Cup in 2023".
"I will continue to defend myself against all these claims," said Pauw. "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. I cannot allow my name to be attached to such false accusations."
Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.