Mohamed al Fayed: Former Fulham women's captain Ronnie Gibbons claims she was sexually assaulted by club's ex-owner

18 October 2024, 14:00 | Updated: 19 October 2024, 01:13

Former Fulham women's captain Ronnie Gibbons has alleged she was twice sexually assaulted by the club's ex-owner Mohamed al Fayed.

Gibbons told The Athletic that the former Harrods' boss tried to "forcefully kiss" her and groped her at his department store in 2000, when she was 20.

She said she was summoned to al Fayed's office above the London department store twice on the pretext that she would speak about football to his children, who were not there when she showed up.

Lawyers representing Gibbons told the PA news agency she had waived her anonymity, using the interview to say she felt she could not speak out about the abuse at the time for fear of jeopardising the future of the women's team.

The former footballer said: "Speaking my truth and finally telling my story will hopefully help me heal and be rid of the shame, embarrassment and pain I have carried for years."

Al Fayed owned Fulham FC between 1997 and 2013.

Gibbons captained the women's team in the 2000-2001 season and said she was "used", adding: "I just felt a huge responsibility on my shoulders because we'd just turned professional.

"Everything internally was screaming at me, 'Ronnie, you need to leave', but I couldn't because I would be to blame for all these women losing their jobs and Fulham Ladies going down the pan.

"I couldn't allow anything to happen to me, but at the same time, I couldn't just run for the hills, which is what I wanted to do."

A statement from the lawyers representing the Justice for Harrods Survivors group said they would have "more to say" about Fulham next week.

Their statement said: "What former Fulham captain Ronnie Gibbons was forced to endure at the hands of Mohamed al Fayed is yet another horrible example of the monstrous abuse aided and abetted by the businesses he owned.

"We salute our client's bravery and are proud to advocate for Ronnie and others at Fulham who are searching for justice. We will do whatever we can to lift the lid on abuse, no matter where it was perpetrated, or who it was perpetrated by, including any enablers of al Fayed's abhorrent behaviour."

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A string of allegations against al Fayed, who died last year aged 94, have emerged since the release of an investigation by the BBC.

The Metropolitan Police said last week it had recorded 40 new allegations against al Fayed, including claims of rape and sexual assault. They are in addition to the 21 women who went to the police between 2005 and 2023 with sex crime allegations against the businessman.

Fulham said on Friday they were "profoundly troubled" after learning of the allegations made by Gibbons.

"She has our deepest empathy and support," the Premier League club added. "We continue to stress our absolute condemnation of abuse in all forms.

"We remain in the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is or would have been impacted by Mohamed al Fayed in any manner as described in recent reports."

Marco Silva, manager of the Fulham men's team, said the club were "not here to hide".

Speaking at a news conference, he said: "All of us can feel it, we're not here to hide. It's sad to listen and we have to be completely against this. We're talking about something from 25 years ago, not last year, two years or three years but it's sad anyway.

"We show empathy and if we can do anything to help as a football club to support those involved, we have to do as a club."

Harrods reiterated its original statement regarding allegations against al Fayed, telling Sky News it was "utterly appalled" by the claims of abuse.

The company said: "These were the actions of an individual who was intent on abusing his power wherever he operated and we condemn them in the strongest terms. We also acknowledge that during this time his victims were failed and for this we sincerely apologise.

"While we cannot undo the past, we have been determined to do the right thing as an organisation, driven by the values we hold today, while ensuring that such behaviour can never be repeated in the future."

(c) Sky News 2024: Mohamed al Fayed: Former Fulham women's captain Ronnie Gibbons claims she was sexually assaulted by club's ex-owner