A senior figure in English football allegedly gave an underage girl £150 after raping her, High Court documents claim.
The man, who works in the Premier League but is protected by a court anonymity order, is being sued for damages by a woman for rape and sexual assault, which allegedly took place at his home in the 1990s when she was 15.
His lawyers said he denied raping her but admitted initiating a “cash for sex” arrangement with her when she was “16 or just 17”.
In court filings, first reported by The Athletic and seen by the PA news agency, lawyers for the woman claimed that the figure “was aware” that the woman was 15 at the time of the alleged rape, and that the “disgusting and traumatising” experience left her “inevitably humiliated and stigmatised”.
They alleged the incident took place after she was dropped off at the man’s home by her parents and that afterwards, he gave her “£150 in three £50 notes” which left her feeling “inevitably violated and ashamed”.
They continued: “The claimant was fearful of disclosing the fact of the index sexual assaults at the time, as she was aware of the power that the defendant held.”
They added: “She feared that she would suffer repercussions and also feared that she or her family may come to some harm if she disclosed what the defendant had done to her.”
The filings stated that the woman suffered from “consequential psychological symptoms”, including “complex post-traumatic stress disorder” and “recurrent depressive disorder”.
She reported the incident to the police in 2021 but was later told that no further action would be taken.
The man has denied that the alleged rape took place, with his lawyers describing the claim as “wholly unfounded” and the accusations as “dishonest and malicious”.
They admitted that the pair had a “cash for sex” arrangement while the woman was aged 16 or 17, but that she “continued to enjoy a friendship” with him for many years.
The documents read: “The defendant had asked the claimant if she wanted to earn some cash for sex, to which she readily agreed.
“The defendant’s request was not made whilst the claimant was at his home, and having accepted the request, she then travelled to his home under her own steam.”
They claimed that the pair had engaged in consensual sexual intercourse “up to about 15 occasions in total… for which he rewarded her with cash payments, in line with her expectations”.
In a separate document, the woman admitted through her legal team that she had sexual intercourse with the man when she was 17, but “expressly denied” that she “readily agreed” to the cash-for-sex arrangement, and added that she believed he would “provide her with a career” if she “complied with his sexual demands”.
In April last year, Judge Amanda Stevens ruled that the man should be anonymised in the civil proceedings, as it was “necessary to secure the proper administration of justice” and that “there is no sufficient countervailing public interest in disclosure”.
A further hearing in the case is expected to be held at a later date.