Portland Thorns FC head coach Rhian Wilkinson has resigned from her position, she said in a statement Friday. The move comes following the conclusion of an investigation into her conduct as coach and just weeks after Wilkinson led the team to its third NWSL championship in her first season as head coach. Here’s what you need to know:
- Wilkinson told The Athletic on Thursday that she resigned following the investigation. While cleared of any misconduct, she felt she had lost the confidence of the team as a whole.
- Wilkinson said she self-reported texts between herself and a Thorns player, expressing feelings for each other to the Thorns. But insisted that no inappropriate relationship occurred between her and the player.
- Following a three-week investigation run jointly by the NWSL and NWSLPA, Wilkinson was found to have not violated any league or team policy.
- The player, Emily Menges, told The Athletic that she participated in the investigation and that she wanted to be identified in order to avoid speculation.
- Thorns players communicated their concerns about Wilkinson and Menges to the team, then the league via a letter sent to NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman on Nov. 20. The letter also questioned the thoroughness of the investigation and potential retaliation had Wilkinson retained her role.
Investigation results and player reaction
At the conclusion of the three-week investigation into Wilkinson’s conduct, the league found no rules were broken.
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“The Portland Thorns and Coach Wilkinson followed all league processes and policies and fully cooperated with this investigation,” said Berman. “The joint investigative team conducted a thorough investigation that resulted in a finding of no violation of League policies.”
Two sources familiar with the results of the investigation but not authorized to speak on the matter confirmed that Wilkinson will not be disqualified from any future work within the NWSL.
However, some Thorns players were not satisfied with the investigation’s conclusions. Players sent a letter to Berman and chief legal officer Bill Ordower in November citing concerns about the relationship given the inherent power imbalance between a player and a coach.
The letter stated that a group of players reported the relationship to Thorns general manager Karina LeBlanc and were informed afterward that the team already knew about the situation and that an investigation had already been conducted which concluded no legal wrongdoing occurred.
The letter expressed concern about the thoroughness of the investigation, whether proper reporting procedure was followed, and whether the player and the coach following up with other players on the matter was inappropriate, including concerns that the coach’s communication could be construed as retaliation or could lead to potential retaliation.
At the same time, there are concerns from a number of players on the team as to the thoroughness of the investigation and the process.
Players sent a letter to NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman on Nov. 20 about those concerns.
(Full text also here: https://t.co/YqNVdxqcgp) pic.twitter.com/fnyXgeZkhr
— Meg Linehan (@itsmeglinehan) December 2, 2022
Why the investigation was launched
“We had shared feelings and immediately realized that we had to take action because a line had been crossed,” Menges said. “We decided immediately we cannot see each other outside of soccer.”
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Menges said that she and Wilkinson cut off all communication and decided to follow the process of the investigation, including Menges not speaking to any team staff to avoid the appearance of influencing the investigation.
Wilkinson told The Athletic she reported the communication between her and Menges to Portland’s human resources department.
“I gave up all my text messages, I gave up all my email communication because I felt very strongly that if there had been any relationship, or anything prior, it would have come out in some way through our communication,” Wilkinson said. “I wanted to be clear that this was all above board. It happened within a week, and then there was no communication (between us).”
Wilkinson said the potential power imbalance was a key part of the investigation based on her own experience with interviews with the legal teams involved.
“If there’s no imbalance of power, which there isn’t, then I do want to put my name on this as like, ‘No, this is a very equal situation’. I want people to understand that,” said Menges.
But the result of the investigation wasn’t the deciding factor in Wilkinson’s decision to step down, telling The Athletic: “Once you’ve lost the locker room, which I have, there’s no return.”
“So that’s why I recognized my time in Portland couldn’t be salvaged a long time ago, because there were players who just wouldn’t communicate with me,” Wilkinson said. “And that part I can live with. When the locker room — whatever reason — is gone, it’s gone. My huge concern is that the processes have been put in place by the players themselves, and I followed them to the T. Not only that, I gave them everything.
“I didn’t want there to be stone left unturned,” Wilkinson continued. “I didn’t want to be exonerated because I was female. I wanted to be looked at as an individual case. I felt very strongly that I had done everything as correctly as possible, but the fact that there will still be consequences, I’m very concerned about what happens moving forward because I truly believe this is one of the most innocent cases they’re ever going to get.”
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Backstory
The joint investigation committee handled Wilkinson’s case, as they have for other reports, under the NWSL’s policy to prevent and eliminate workplace discrimination, harassment and bullying. The league’s anti-harassment policy also covers power imbalances, emotional misconduct and other forms of harassment, abuse and misconduct — regardless if it rises to the level of breaking any laws.
The league came under intense scrutiny following The Athletic’s report last year concerning former Portland head coach Paul Riley and allegations of sexual and emotional abuse. That story led to an independent investigation by U.S. soccer, led by former U.S. Deputy Attorney Sally Q. Yates.
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Earlier on Thursday, team owner Merritt Paulson announced his intention to sell the Thorns, after stepping back from any oversight role with the club following the release of the Yates report. Paulson’s decision came after repeated calls from fans and some players to sell the team.
(Photo: Amber Searls / USA Today)
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