UEFA Bans Former Czech Women's Football Coach for Life Over Secret Filming of Players

UEFA has banned former Czech women's football coach Petr Vlachovsky from any football-related activity for life after its Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body found he breached rules on insulting or indecent behaviour and brought the sport into disrepute, according to BBC Sport. The European football governing body's ruling follows a criminal conviction in the Czech Republic, where Vlachovsky received a suspended one-year prison sentence and a five-year coaching ban for secretly filming 14 female players over a four-year period. UEFA has formally asked FIFA to extend the lifetime ban worldwide and has ordered the Football Association of the Czech Republic to revoke Vlachovsky's coaching licence, BBC Sport reported.

The Details

The criminal case against Vlachovsky centred on the secret filming of 14 female players over four years, according to BBC Sport. The players were reportedly recorded using a camera concealed in a backpack, the outlet reported, citing information from FIFPRO. Among those filmed, the youngest victim was 17 years old, according to the same report. In Czech criminal proceedings, Vlachovsky was convicted and received a suspended one-year prison sentence alongside a five-year prohibition on coaching, BBC Sport reported.

Before the conviction stripped him of his position, Vlachovsky had spent almost 15 years coaching girls and women at top-tier Czech club 1. FC Slovacko, according to BBC Sport. During that time, he also held a national team role, previously leading the Czech Republic Under-19 women's team. His dual responsibilities placed him in sustained proximity to young female athletes for well over a decade.

The psychological toll on those affected was documented in interviews with Czech outlet Seznam Zpravy, according to BBC Sport. Players told the outlet that the abuse left them afraid to sleep and anxious when in public spaces because they feared they were being filmed, BBC Sport reported. The recorded accounts describe lasting anxiety rather than isolated incidents.

UEFA's Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body issued its ruling in formal disciplinary language, stating that Vlachovsky is prohibited "from exercising any football-related activity for life," according to BBC Sport. The same body imposed two additional directives: a request to FIFA for worldwide extension of the ban, and an order to Czech football authorities to revoke his coaching licence.

Context

The UEFA lifetime ban significantly expands the scope of sanctions beyond those already imposed by Czech courts. While the domestic conviction resulted in a suspended prison term and a five-year coaching prohibition, UEFA's action bars Vlachovsky permanently from all football-related involvement across Europe, BBC Sport reported. The disciplinary determination indicates that the governing body considers the conduct serious enough to warrant exclusion not merely from national-level coaching but from the sport entirely at the continental level.

The case highlights the capacity of sporting federations to apply sanctions that operate in parallel with, and extend beyond, national criminal proceedings. Although Czech legal authorities handed down their own penalties, UEFA's disciplinary framework allowed for a separate assessment of whether the conduct met the threshold for bringing football into disrepute, according to BBC Sport.

By requesting that FIFA extend the ban globally, UEFA signalled its view that the offence warrants universal exclusion from football rather than restriction to European territories, BBC Sport reported. The instruction to the Football Association of the Czech Republic to formally revoke Vlachovsky's coaching licence closes a potential avenue for continued formal involvement in the sport under domestic certification, the outlet reported.

What's Next

UEFA's request to FIFA for worldwide extension of the lifetime ban is now pending consideration, according to BBC Sport. The Football Association of the Czech Republic has been formally directed to revoke Vlachovsky's coaching licence. The disciplinary ruling did not specify a timeline for FIFA's response to the extension request, BBC Sport reported.

With both the lifetime ban and the licence revocation in motion, the remaining procedural steps focus on implementation of the sanctions already determined. Whether additional complainants or other football bodies will take further action in connection with the case was not addressed in the available reporting, BBC Sport noted.