U.S. Soccer Suspends Coach's License Over Abuse Allegations

U.S. Soccer has suspended the coaching license of former University of Toledo women's head soccer coach Brad Evans following a report from the Guardian that lays out multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. 

Evans was informed Wednesday of the decision by U.S. Soccer, which said he has been blocked from accessing the federation's learning center and removed from any study groups or courses he was in. The federation has also notified SafeSport and the leadership at the Ohio Soccer Association, where Evans was employed after stepping down at Toledo in 2015. 

The three-month Guardian investigation was published Wednesday and featured interviews with former players, coaches , University of Toledo staff, and families of former students. The report also details how the university handled allegations of abuse by Evans, and how he was still allowed to coach and hold prominent positions within the game of soccer in the United States. 

Evans served as head coach at Toledo for 13 years and since 2015 he has resurfaced in leadership roles within youth soccer and education. He served as the head of coaching education for the Ohio Soccer Association and coached in the Olympic Development Program. 

Former Toledo player Candice Fabry recounted to the Guardian being at a restaurant with Evans and his wife and another member of the coaching staff. She said Evans assaulted her in the bathroom of the restaurant on that occasion.

“I remember my back against the wall. I remember his tongue in my mouth. I remember feeling him pushed up against my body. I remember his tongue. I remember his hands in my pants and in my underwear. And that’s where I leave my body,” Fabry told the Guardian.

Other players and coaches recalled Evans routinely making comments about their breasts and weight. 

When Evans resigned from Toledo in 2015, he did so without giving reason for his sudden departure. But a local television received a statement from him at the time after reporting that he had had relationships with multiple co-workers. 

“It was clear that my interactions with those co-workers demonstrated poor judgment on my part, and were against university policy, and resigning was best for all involved,” Evans wrote at the time. 

According to the Guardian, two years after his resignation, Evans accepted multiple roles with the Ohio North Youth Soccer Association and its Olympic Development Program and as a US Soccer coaching instructor.

The University of Toledo vice-president of marketing and communications Adrienne King gave the following statement in response to the Guardian's reporting: 

UToledo did conduct an investigation following a report by a student-athlete in January 2015 of verbal harassment by Brad Evans, who was at the time the Head Coach of the women’s soccer team. The investigation did find that Mr. Evans’ conduct toward student-athletes may have violated the University’s Standards of Conduct policy, however, the case was not referred for possible disciplinary action because by the conclusion of the investigation in March 2015, Mr. Evans had already resigned his position effective Feb. 23, 2015.