A sexual abuse scandal involving mainly young male English victims was revealed in mid-November 2016 when former professional footballers waived their rights to anonymity and talked publicly about child sexual abuse by former football coaches in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.
Echoing similar revelations in the 1990s, the initial 2016 allegations centred on abuse of young players at Crewe Alexandra and Manchester City due to the clubs' associations with Barry Bennell (previously convicted of sexual abuse offences in the US and UK), who became the first person charged, with (by June 2017) 55 new offences of historical sexual abuse. Allegations were also made against a former Newcastle United youth coach George Ormond (imprisoned in 2002 for offences against young footballers in the area and, in July 2017, facing 35 new charges) and a former scout, Eddie Heath, at Chelsea, together with allegations that both clubs tried to cover up the abuse. Bob Higgins, a coach at Southampton and Peterborough, was also the subject of allegations, and, in July 2017, was charged with 65 offences.
In early December 2016, allegations about former youth coaches and scouts in Northern Ireland and Scotland also started to emerge (with some individuals, including three associated with Celtic Boys Club, charged with new offences in 2017). By mid December, in response to allegations from 350 individuals, the Football Association, the Scottish Football Association, several football clubs and over 20 UK police forces had established various inquiries and investigations. By 30 June 2017, the number of affected clubs had grown to 328, with 276 identified suspects, 741 alleged victims and 1,886 incidents.