CEO and coach say they found out through media reports
\nLONDON
\nInternational women\u2019s football star Sam Kerr is facing trial in England after pleading not guilty to a racially aggravated offence against a London police officer, prosecutors said.
\nThe Chelsea striker and Australia captain was charged following an incident in January last year, when the Metropolitan Police said they were called to a dispute over a taxi fare.
\nThe 30-year-old Kerr, born to an Anglo-Indian father and Australian mother, is a treasured sporting figure in Australia and one of the most famous players in women\u2019s football.
\nAustralia\u2019s all-time leading scorer last year graced the cover of the FIFA video game alongside Kylian Mbappe.
\nShe is expected to face trial in February 2025. The charge, relating to \u201cthreatening, abusive or insulting\u201d behaviour, can carry a fine or custodial sentence if proven.
\nThe alleged incident occurred before last year\u2019s World Cup, which was held in Australia and New Zealand, but was not publicly disclosed until now and appeared to take Australian football bosses by surprise.
\nMatildas coach Tony Gustavsson said he had only found out about the allegation on Tuesday and was yet to speak to his skipper.
\n\u201cI was informed this morning and obviously I was surprised,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cI can\u2019t comment on the offence because it\u2019s a legal matter at this point. The only thing I can comment on is my experience and interaction with Sam as a person, and as a footballer.
\n\u201cAnd I have only had positive experiences,\u201d he said.
\nGustavsson said it was too early to say whether the allegation would rule Kerr out of selection for this summer\u2019s Paris Olympics.
\nKerr has been sidelined since January with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament.
\n\u201cI think it\u2019s a bit too early to look at selection at this time and as we all know with Sam\u2019s serious injury in January, there\u2019s obviously a very big question mark whether she will even be up for selection,\u201d said Gustavsson.
\nFootball Australia CEO James Johnson called the allegation \u201cunsettling\u201d and \u201cvery serious\u201d.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve got our own questions that we\u2019d like to know. We\u2019ve got to find out what actually happened,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s regarding racism, and there\u2019s no place for racism in our sport. At the same time. Sam has rights, natural justice rights, procedural rights, that she\u2019s going to work her way through and we\u2019re respectful of that.\u201d
\nFormer Australia men\u2019s team captain Craig Foster said the news was unexpected and distressing.
\n\u201cRacism is a very serious issue (not only) in sport. Let\u2019s acknowledge the rights of the other person involved and hope that February absolves Sam,\u201d he posted on X, formerly Twitter.
\nKerr has been credited with helping drive the booming popularity of the women\u2019s game both in Australia and globally.
\nShe played Australian Rules football as a youngster and was convinced she would one day represent her beloved West Coast Eagles, like her elder brother.
\nShe switched to football aged 12 and made her full international debut against Italy in 2009, a precocious talent aged just 15 at the time.
\nKnown for her pace, agility and heading ability \u2014 as well as her trademark backflip goal celebrations \u2014 Kerr left for the United States in 2013.
\nShe went first to Western New York Flash, then Sky Blue FC in New Jersey and finally Chicago Red Stars.
\nAfter moving to Chelsea in 2020, Kerr rose to a new level.
\nThe 2023 Ballon d\u2019Or runner-up scored the only goal in Chelsea\u2019s 1-0 win over Manchester United in last season\u2019s FA Cup final.
\nAs her star has continued to rise over the years, Kerr has signed lucrative endorsement deals with the likes of Nike and Mastercard.
\nShe has scored 99 goals in 128 games in all competitions for Chelsea.
\nIn 2019, Kerr became the first Australian, man or woman, to score a hat-trick at a World Cup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CEO and coach say they found out through media reports LONDON International women\u2019s football star Sam Kerr is facing trial in England after pleading not guilty to a racially aggravated offence against a London police officer, prosecutors said. The Chelsea striker and Australia captain was charged following an incident in January last year, when the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":391793,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-391768","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n