Fulham FC launches probe into former owner Mohamed Al-Fayed after Harrods rape and sexual assault allegations
Mohamed Al-Fayed owned Fulham for 16 years as they rose from League One to the Premier League
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Fulham Football Club has launched an investigation into whether anyone at the club was affected following allegations by 20 women of sexual assaults by Mohamed Al-Fayed.
The allegations have been made by former employees of the Egyptian billionaire’s Harrods department store in London, as well as at the Ritz.
Al-Fayed who is accused of abusing women in London, Paris, St Tropez and Abu Dhabi, died last year aged 94.
The allegations were first revealed by the BBC documentary Al-Fayed: Predator at Harrods, and another woman has since come forward to accuse him of “sickening” sexual abuse.
In a press conference by lawyers representing victims, barrister Maria Mulla was asked whether other businesses owned by Mohammed Al Fayed, such as Fulham Football Club, were affected.
“Yes, we are aware of allegations that have been made at other places of work,” she said.
“We also represent women who were employed by the Ritz.
“We don’t at this stage represent any women who, for instance, sustained attacks at Fulham Football Club.
“But our investigations are obviously ongoing into all these entities that he had an involvement in.”
Harrods previously said it was “utterly appalled” by the allegations of abuse and said it had set up a page on its website inviting former employees to come forward if they have allegations.
A Fulham spokesperson said: “We are deeply troubled and concerned to learn of the disturbing reports following yesterday’s documentary. We have sincere empathy for the women who have shared their experiences.
“We are in the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is or has been affected. Should any person wish to share information or experiences relating to these allegations, we encourage them to contact the club at: safeguarding@fulhamfc.com or the police.”
Current Fulham manager Marco Silva said at a press conference when asked about the documentary: “I haven’t watched it.
“I have had a conversation with Carmelo (Mifsud, the press officer), and of course the club have put a statement out. It’s always important for the club to put a statement out.
“From myself, and I’m speaking on behalf of the football club, it is really sad for us to hear. But there’s nothing more from me. The statement from the club was clear.”
Al-Fayed purchased Fulham in 1997, after their promotion to the old Division Two (now League One).
He immediately announced his ambition to take the club to the Premier League within five years.
Fulham were promoted to the lucrative top flight in 2001 and remained there until 2014.
During his time, Al-Fayed was regularly seen at Fulham matches, occasionally in the company of high-profile guests including, on one occasion in April 1999, Michael Jackson.
Jackson was shown around the dressing room in the company of Al-Fayed, who commissioned a statue in tribute to the former singer following his death in 2009. It stood in place until Shahid Khan bought the club in 2013, when it was promptly removed.
The statue was originally supposed to be placed at Harrods rather than an awkward corner of a football ground along the banks of the Thames, but the plan was altered after Al-Fayed sold the store in 2010.
The gesture was criticised by many Fulham fans at the time, and ridiculed in the media, in part because of the association between the club and the controversial King of Pop who had been accused of sexual abuse as far back as 1993.
With reporting from PA.