"When the National Women's Soccer League settled with three separate attorneys general earlier this year-following investigations by all three into the league's years of failure to prevent or adequately respond to player reports of harassment and sexual misconduct-the agreement came with several requirements. One was that the league would pay $5 million to players who were abused. Another was a mandate for the league to submit regular reports to the three AGs about what it was doing to keep the abuse from happening again,"
"Defector Media filed public records requests for copies of the 2025 NWSL semi-annual compliance report with the three three attorneys general-New York, Illinois, and Washington D.C.-who would have each received a copy. New York outright rejected our request, no surprise given the state's largely toothless public records law, but Illinois and Washington both responded with copies of the compliance report."
The NWSL settled with New York, Illinois and Washington D.C. attorneys general, agreeing to pay $5 million to abused players and to submit regular compliance reports. Semiannual reports must describe prevention efforts and investigations into misconduct. Public-records requests yielded responses: New York denied access, Illinois provided a report but could not find exhibits, and Washington produced the report plus exhibits. An anti-harassment training exhibit shows 43 complaints received in 2024 from clubs, players, or the players union. Several details remain redacted, and the 43-complaint figure lacks clarification about the nature of the complaints or specific policy violations.
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