The claims, many made by former members of the Irish women’s senior team, have kicked off an investigation by An Garda Síochána (the Irish police force).
The allegations involve three men, well-known in Irish football circles, one of whom held a senior position in the FAI at the time.
Interviews with dozens of former players will become public over the weekend, and on "Prime Time Investigates: Girls In Green" on RTÉ on Sunday night. A release from RTÉ on Thursday claimed the programme will reveal "widespread allegations of inappropriate behaviour made by women against Irish male soccer coaches’ and ‘unwanted sexual advances."
The men involved deny any wrong-doing. In a statement, the FAI acknowledged "the enormous courage of the women in coming forward and would encourage anyone involved in Irish football to report any concern that may arise".
Sports Minister Catherine Martin, in a statement on Thursday, described the allegations as "very shocking" and said: "I have been assured that the FAI is engaging and co-operating with the live Garda investigation into these allegations, with an athlete-centred approach.
"I commend the bravery of the women who have stepped forward."
The timing of the accusations has left the FAI hierarchy reeling. It comes ahead a meeting of the General Assembly tomorrow, and of FAI staff on Monday.
The women’s senior international team are preparing for European Championship qualifiers against England next Friday and France on Tuesday week
FAI president Paul Cooke yesterday contacted all General Assembly members with notice of the disturbing news.
"I wanted to make you aware of an upcoming media story relating to a series of allegations of historical abuse of women involved in football in the 1990s," he said.
"You may see the story promoted over the coming days and I wanted to give you the reassurance that the Association is treating this matter with the utmost importance and is engaging both with the women involved and the relevant authorities."
"All safeguarding concerns that are brought to the attention of the Association are dealt with as a matter of priority," he said.
At the same time, interim CEO David Courell, issued a similar statement to FAI staff, with a rider, stressing: "As ever, we are here to support all staff.
"If you find yourself impacted by any of the stories, or should you need to raise any concerns, please feel free to come and speak to myself, Aoife (Rafferty), Kirsten (Pakes)."
Rafferty is the FAI’s HR director, while Pakes is the FAI’s child welfare and safeguarding manager. The FAI have listed "Safeguarding Awareness Campaign" on the agenda for tomorrow’s General Assembly meeting in Dublin.
Since the "Liberty Belles" stood up to the old FAI hierarchy in April 2017, the Association has been at pains to ensure the welfare of women on international duty is paramount.
The claims against the FAI come at a time when the cash-strapped association is desperate to repair government relations after two shambolic Leinster House appearances in the past seven months.
Since November, there has been no senior men’s team manager after Stephen Kenny’s contract ran down. And since April, there has been no CEO, nor a director of marketing and communications, following the departures of Jonathan Hill and Louise Cassidy respectively.
Media enquiries on this latest controversy were directed to Gareth Maher, communications manager for the Irish women’s team.
The Irish players on media duty on Monday can expect to be asked for their reaction to the accusations.
Ex-Ireland international Sinéad Farrelly revealed in 2021 how she, and other players, were sexually harassed by her male coach, Paul Riley, who later received a lifetime ban from the US National Women’s Soccer League in 2023.
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