August 3 – FIFA is investigating allegations of misconduct involving the Zambia team at the Women’s World Cup.
The probe follows a report in Britain’s Guardian newspaper that coach Bruce Mwape had allegedly rubbed his hands over the chest of one of his players.
“FIFA takes any allegation of misconduct extremely seriously and has a clear process in place for anyone in football who wants to report an incident,” a FIFA spokesperson said.
“We can confirm that a complaint has been received in relation to the Zambian Women’s National team and this is currently being investigated. We cannot provide further details regarding an ongoing investigation for obvious confidentiality reasons.”
The Guardian reported the incident had happened after a training session ahead of Zambia’s final group game against Costa Rica.
Zambia, who were participating in the World Cup for the first time, beat Costa Rica to record the country’s first ever victory at the finals although they exited the tournament at the group stage after defeats to Japan and Spain.
Zambia’s FA said it had not received any complaint and was surprised by the allegations.
“We wish to state the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) has not received any such complaint from any of the players or officials in the delegation that travelled to the World Cup,” FAZ General Secretary Reuben Kamanga said in a statement.
“All the training sessions for the Copper Queens were filmed by the FAZ media team and offers no such footage… Additionally, a FIFA film crew attached to the Zambian team at the World Cup was present at all training sessions.”
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