LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Racing Louisville Football Club fired then-coach Christy Holly within hours of learning of sexual abuse allegations against him by then-club player Erin Simon, despite a request from the National Women's Soccer League to pause taking action until it could investigate further, a report commissioned by the league and its players' association revealed Wednesday.
But the club did not do enough in its hiring process to learn of prior misconduct by Holly and afforded the coach too much protection in a non-disparagement agreement it struck with him upon his termination, according to a report by Covington & Burling LLP and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP.
The joint investigation also said that the club did not respond seriously enough to other concerns about Holly brought by players, convening a joint meeting with players and coaches that only wound up in retaliation by Holly and resulting in a reluctance of players to bring future issues to management.
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But its most-pointed criticism seemed to come for the non-disparagement agreement with Holly, which paid him $14,000 in severance and arranged to take over rent payments of his apartment when he vacated it. The club agreed not to disclose Holly's alleged actions — even to law enforcement — but the agreement included a caveat that allowed Holly to comment candidly to teams about assessments of players, thereby preserving a means for him to retaliate. The penalty for breaking the NDA was set at $5,000.
The club said it entered the agreement to protect the confidentiality of Simon, but the report says the agreement went too far. It criticized the club for not disclosing the reason for Holly's dismissal to the players and public more clearly. Several players told investigators they were confused by the club's initial explanation to them over the firing.
"The non-disparagement provision was far more limiting on the club than what was necessary to protect her confidentiality," the report says. "The agreement prohibited the club from disclosing Holly's sexual misconduct, including to law enforcement, unless compelled by law. This prohibition extended to disclosures that would not identify Simon or that Simon approved. It, therefore, prevented the club from being able to confirm Simon's account if she chose to share her experience publicly, and it put other players at risk by preventing the club from disclosing Holly's conduct to any clubs and organizations considering hiring Holly."
The report proposed guidelines for the league and its clubs to use moving forward, but included no proposed disciplinary action for Racing Louisville FC.
Holly at first agreed to meet with the investigative team for the report, then declined after the Yates report was released.
— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) December 14, 2022
In all, the report expands on a bombshell report commissioned by U.S. Soccer and released by former acting U.S. attorney general Sally Yates over the summer.
In it, Simon described disturbing scenes of Holly groping her during private video sessions, sending suggestive text messages and touching her inappropriately during other settings.
When the Yates report came out, the Louisville Coopers stood in solidarity behind the players and still do now after the new NWSL report. The Coopers are backers of Louisville's soccer clubs.
"They did more to protect Holly and themselves than the players," Herman Quinn Jr., president of The Coopers, said.
Quinn Jr. says the NWSL report has brought "more disgust."
The club has not issued a response to the report, saying it was still reviewing the findings as of late Wednesday evening.
This story will be updated.
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