By Beth McCowen (24/10/2023)
Above: Morocco’s International Women’s Team. Photo: 7e News.
Earlier this month, former head coach for Spain’s World Cup winning squad, Jorge Vilda, was appointed as the new manager of Morocco’s women’s national team.
Following their win against England in the FIFA 2023 Women’s World Cup final, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) came under fire after their then-president, Luis Rubiales, grabbed and kissed player Jenni Hermoso without her consent. In the midst of an investigation into the incident, Vilda was sacked.
This was, however, not the first time the attention of the world was brought to the inappropriate behaviour of powerful menwithin the world of football, or the ill-treatment of Spain’s senior players specifically.
Barcelona’s Mapï León and Patricia Guijarro, for example, were among the players who, prior to the tournament, had already boycotted the national team due to concerns regarding conduct towards players. Questions were, and rightly so, being asked about Vilda’s ethics before the World Cup had even begun. The actions of Rubiales only served to confirm that there was a deep-rooted issue which players need to be better protected from.
Morocco made history this year by being the first Arab-country to quality for the World Cup, under coach Reynald Pedros.
It is somewhat disheartening and concerning, then, to see a team and a nation which has made such an important step in their women’s game, choose to employ a manager who has a clearly worrying track-record of complaints when it comes to the running of a team and control over its players. There is also the alarming factor of his role in defending the inexcusable actions of Rubiales, as well as the fact that he is currently under investigation in Spain in relation to this.
Many women around the world, whether they are involved in sport or not, are unfortunately all-too familiar with the experience of Hermoso. A man has abused his position of authority in a way which is detrimental to a woman, who has essentially then had to justify why it was not acceptable and explain how it affected her in order to be taken seriously.
The situation should, and arguably could, have been prevented from occurring in the first place. Spanish players should never have been forced into a situation where it was necessary to boycott their own national team. Jenni Hermoso never should have been assaulted in front of the whole world.
Despite all of this, one of the men at the centre of all the controversy, has kept his place on the international stage. Whilst one team has asked for change, and many others have supported them in doing so, another is now taking a step in the wrong direction. Upon seeing the damage which has been done to the Spanish team, perhaps not in terms of football performance, but certainly in terms of wellbeing and morale, it is astounding that the RFEF have seemingly encouraged the move, and that Morocco have accepted it, whilst global football organisations have, largely, looked on and said nothing.
One must consider whether the Moroccan team has been at all consulted regarding this matter. Is their safety being considered, or is Vilda simply allowed to walk into another job in women’s football, despite the damage done to the last team he managed, and his alleged misconduct?
Some might argue that because Vilda has not been convicted of any criminal charges, he should not lose out on a job opportunity. However, there is an obvious and disturbing pattern which he undoubtedly played a part in, and it is imperative that the concerns of female players are taken seriously, both for the sake of their own welfare, and the safeguarding of a positive, misogyny-free environment throughout women’s football.
The way to foster this is not to provide a part of the problem with a new opportunity, with very little consequences for their actions being proportionately faced by him and those like Rubiales, who were at the forefront of a scandal which overshadowed what should have been a joyous, monumental moment for the Spanish team.
Why has the risk of allowing something similar to happen to the Moroccan team been taken? This does not set a good example at any level, and, maybe most pressingly, it shows a blatant disregard for the experiences of women who have been disrespected and made to feel uncomfortable.
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