The FA has terminated the contract of Mark Sampson, ending his time as the coach of the England women's national team. His contract was terminated due to "inappropriate and unacceptable behavior" after safeguarding allegations during his time as the head coach of the Bristol Academy.

As the head coach of England, Sampson underwent allegations that he made racist comments to two players on his side, including star forward Eni Aluko. He was cleared of any wrongdoing after two investigations, one by the FA and another by an independent review led by Katherine Newton.

Sampson managed England in their first FIFA Women's World Cup qualifier over Russia. The Lionesses won 6-0 which puts them atop the group in the early stages over Wales.

Long and drawn out investigation

When the allegations came out in 2014, Sampson was cleared of any wrongdoing, but when Martin Glenn joined as chief executive a year later, he was made aware of the allegations and was told to read the full report after someone outside the FA had advised him to.

Both Glenn and FA chairman Greg Clarke spoke at a press conference at Wembley regarding the situation and said that it was one of the most "awkward and complicated" situations the pair has dealt with. After reading the full report, both men were highly concerned with the content of it, and that conduct issues were the main problem.

They finished it off by saying that Sampson had crossed the "professional boundaries" between player and coach.

Sampson was hired in 2013 as the national team manager and led the Lionesses to their best ever FIFA Women's World Cup showing by making the semifinals. The Lionesses finished in third place, defeating Germany, their first win over Die Nationalelf in 21 games.

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About the author
Noel John Alberto
Filipino-American sports journalist from Toms River, NJ. UMBC Graduate and aspiring physical therapist. Tennis editor and multi-sport coordinator for VAVEL USA. Writer for Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Serie A sections of VAVEL UK. Sports aficionado. Host of the On The Line tennis podcast.