A damning new report has exposed significant distrust in global sports bodies, including FIFA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), over their handling of athletes convicted of sexual offences. The publication comes just as the draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup is set to take place, with the final confirmed for MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Institutional Failure and a 'Dome of Silence'
The collaborative report, titled 'No One Wants to Talk About It', is based on interviews with elite athletes affected by sexual abuse. It aims to assess attitudes around the eligibility of athletes with prior criminal sexual convictions to compete in mega-events like the World Cup and Olympics. The athletes interviewed highlighted a pattern of 'institutional inaction, silence, or complicity' from governing bodies.
Produced by the Sports and Rights Alliance and Belgium's Thomas More University, the report surveyed athletes who claimed there is a lack of clear safeguarding policies from clubs and federations, no transparent eligibility standards, and inconsistent responses to abuse concerns. One athlete stated that bodies must first acknowledge the problem, comparing its seriousness to ensuring proper playing surfaces for top-level football.
High-Profile Cases Highlight Global Accountability Gap
The investigation found no consistent global approach to the participation of athletes with such convictions. It cited the high-profile case of former footballer Robinho, sentenced in Italy for rape in 2017 and jailed in Brazil in 2024, yet who remained eligible to play professionally after his conviction. The report argues this case shows how legal and geographic barriers can let offenders avoid consequences.
Another current example is Ghana and Villarreal midfielder Thomas Partey. Charged with multiple counts of rape and sexual assault in England, Partey has pleaded not guilty and is due to stand trial in November 2026 – after the upcoming World Cup. He remains eligible to play for his national team, underscoring the complex dilemma between legal rights and ethical considerations for sports organisations.
Calls for Binding 'Safe Sport' Regulations
Joanna Maranhão of the Sports and Rights Alliance, a former Olympic swimmer, noted that 'distrust was something that came up in every single interview'. She contrasted the strict, binding global rules for doping and match-fixing with the absence of equivalent frameworks for athlete safety and safeguarding.
The report acknowledges the legal right to societal reintegration after serving a sentence but calls for urgent action. It also raises questions about how US immigration law might affect athletes with convictions participating in the 2026 World Cup or the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. FIFA did not respond to requests to clarify its eligibility rules or address potential US immigration issues.
The issue gained recent prominence when Australia banned Dutch volleyball player Steven van de Velde, a convicted child rapist, from entering the country for a world championship, despite his selection for the Netherlands team. Van de Velde later competed at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Maranhão concluded that tackling sexual harassment and abuse is more complex than doping, hampered by a 'dome of silence and retaliation and a lack of institutional courage to challenge it'.
