Federation Internationale de Football Association(FIFA) which is the International Federation of Association Football said that they are investigating a misconduct complaint which involves the Zambian team at the Women’s World Cup 2024.
According to Wion, some media reports stated that the Zambian coach Bruce Mwape was seen allegedly rubbing a player’s breasts. FIFA vows a tough punishment for the coach if the allegations are proven.
According to the reports, a FIFA spokesperson confirmed that a complaint has been received regarding the Zambian Women’s national team and the complaint is being investigated. The Federation takes any misconduct seriously and there is a clear space for anyone who wants to register a complaint regarding any incident.
The Zambian team flew back home after being eliminated from the group stage of the event held in New Zealand and Australia.
This edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup is the first co-hosted tournament and is being held under multiple Confederations.
The allegations of this sexual abuse popped up on social media last year, where the Football Association of Zambia opened an investigation on this particular topic.
Despite there is been no official complaint launched the organization expressed its profound level of concern and gravity regarding the allegations. They stated that they consider these allegations very serious.
Bruce Mwape on the allegations:
Bruce Mwape is the Zambian coach for the last five years and was frequently asked about the accusations which he denied stating them as “ fake” and abandoning the suggestion to resign as the coach.
The coach was pushed to speak on this particular subject before their match against Spain on July 26. He states what environment is affecting the team. He added by asking what particular thing the media is talking about. The coach wanted to know the reason and he further stated that he would not retire without any reason.
He confronted by saying that the reason might be media or press which everyone is reading, he wants the truth to come out and he doesn’t want any rumours regarding the allegations.
While being asked the team spokesperson did not respond immediately on Friday and the New Zealand police also did not receive any complaint regarding the same.
The police spokesperson stated that they were made aware of the incident and made initial enquiries but according to the investigation, no further action was required.
The International Federation also said that any allegations made of sexual abuse were handled strictly.
FIFA stated that anywhere guilt would be established the governing body would take strict actions may it be removing the game from anyone’s life permanently. And FIFA’s records also depict the same principles.
Zambia’s World Cup campaign was not very promising as the team faced two major losses against Spain and Japan. However, the team managed to register their first WC win against Costa Rica with a lead of 3-1.
Other than this case there have been various cases of sexual assault in the Women’s FIFA World Cup which include Gabon, Haiti, the United States of America (USA) and the Gulf country Afghanistan.
The federations made their rules strict regarding sexual assaults and harassment in a revision of their Code of Ethics.
The limitation period of 10 years for prosecuting sexual offences has been eliminated, and member associations and confederations are now bounded to inform the body about any determinations made regarding cases of sexual abuse or harassment.
The round of 16 is set to begin on August 5, followed by quarter-finals on the 11th and the event will end after a one-month span where the champions will be crowned on August 20 in Sydney, Australia.
