Podcaster Alex Cooper accuses former BU soccer coach Nancy Feldman of sexual harassment – The New York Times

The prominent podcaster Alex Cooper says in a new documentary that she was sexually harassed by her soccer coach while at Boston University and that the school did not take action when she and her parents went to the athletic administration with their concerns.
Cooper, the host of the popular podcast “Call Her Daddy,” said in the first episode of the documentary series “Call Her Alex,” which was released on Hulu this week, that while playing soccer at BU a decade ago, coach Nancy Feldman commented on her appearance and asked about her sex life. She said that Feldman once put her hand on Cooper’s thigh, and that Cooper worried about playing time and other consequences if she “didn’t follow this woman’s rules.” Cooper and her parents, who also appear in the series, said they brought their concerns to the athletic administration at BU, which, according to Cooper, “entirely dismissed everything I had been through.”
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“I started to notice her really starting to fixate on me way more than any other teammate of mine,” Cooper said of Feldman in the documentary. “It was confusing because the focus wasn’t like, ‘You’re doing so well. Let’s get you on the field. You’re gonna be a starter.’ It was all based in her wanting to know who I was dating, her making comments about my body and her always wanting to be alone with me.”
Boston University and Feldman, who was the women’s soccer coach from the start of the program in 1995 until she retired in 2022, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
At one point in the documentary, teammate Alex Schlobohm remembers a team film session in which Feldman commented on Cooper’s body.
“For whatever reason, every minute that Alex played was highlighted during that film session,” Schlobohm said. “It was all based off of her appearance, whereas I felt like when (Feldman) made comments about other players, it was about their performance.”
Cooper said in the documentary that one time, Feldman asked questions after Cooper was dropped off at practice by a man she was seeing.
“She asks me, ‘Did you have sex last night?’” Cooper said. “I’m like, ‘I’m sorry, what?’ She’s like, ‘I don’t know if you should be sleeping off campus.’ And I’m like, ‘All of the other girls on my team sleep off campus.’ I didn’t know what to do. And every time I tried to resist her, she would say, ‘There could be consequences.’ And there were.”
Cooper said that the situation affected her playing time in the NCAA tournament.
The documentary also features Cooper’s parents, Laurie and Bryan, recalling Cooper’s experience on the team and their meeting with BU administration. Cooper said that the family reached out to a lawyer who described the situation as sexual harassment, but that they decided to meet with the dean of athletics rather than bring a lawsuit that could stretch out for years.
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Cooper said that the administration told her they were not going to fire Feldman, but that Cooper could keep her full tuition scholarship.
“No investigation. Within five minutes, they had entirely dismissed everything I had been through,” she said. “I got into the car with my parents, and when the door shut, I immediately broke down and I just started sobbing. I said to my parents, ‘I’m done. I don’t ever want to see this woman again.’”
Cooper did not play her senior year and graduated in 2017.
In 2018, she started “Call Her Daddy” with former co-host Sofia Franklyn. The show was initially owned and distributed by Barstool Sports. In 2021, Cooper signed a $60 million distribution deal with Spotify and then a $124 million deal with SiriusXM in 2024.
In a short podcast episode released Tuesday, Cooper said that she learned “that other women had stepped onto that same field and experienced the same harassment,” though it’s not clear who Cooper is referring to.
The “Call Her Daddy” host said on her podcast that the documentary was meant to focus on her touring her podcast, but that the focus changed after the opening tour stop in Boston, when she returned to BU for the first time since graduating.
“The minute I saw Nickerson Field, I broke down, and I started sobbing. I didn’t realize how much I had suppressed and how much I was still carrying with me,” Cooper said.
“It’s really painful to talk about, and I think a part of me also feels embarrassed that this happened to me, the ‘Call Her Daddy’ girl,” Cooper continued. “In coming forward, I was also afraid of retaliation. I also worried people would downplay or dismiss the severity of what I experienced because the abuse wasn’t physical. And with a podcast that focuses on empowering women, I felt shame, that my abuser happened to be a woman, and I was worried that sharing my story could quite literally undermine everything I stand for.”
(Photo: Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images)

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