After first going to the police in August 2021, Kira emailed the FA, Premier League and the club about her allegations the following month “in desperation”, as she was worried about him continuing to play on such a big platform while he was being investigated.

The club told her it couldn’t discuss her allegations for legal reasons. The Premier League directed her to the FA.

More than four months after contacting the FA about her allegations, it told her in emails that it could take “no further action” as the alleged behaviour did not breach its regulations.

It stated there was “no evidence” to suggest that Player X “poses a risk of harm to children or adults at risk”. It sent her a PDF document that was titled “Football’s Safeguarding Children policy” – which did not apply to her.

“They were hiding behind their lack of policies whilst knowing that the regulations they did have set up were meant to protect profits, not victims,” says Kira.

In July 2024, Kira again approached the club, Premier League and FA – sending them evidence that she was a “vulnerable adult”.

In an email, seen by the BBC, the club told her they had passed her correspondence onto the Premier League and the FA. The Premier League told her it was unable to discuss allegations currently under police investigation. And the FA, told her it couldn’t share any details or updates regarding if any FA interventions have been taken.

“Further, we refer to our email…where we explained we are not the employer of the individual,” it added.

Speaking about the response Kira told the BBC their correspondence has “reinforced a devastating message that I don’t matter, that more women coming forward doesn’t matter, and that even when I meet safeguarding requirements, it will never matter”.

Another woman – Mia – said she believes if the FA and club had acted when they were first alerted to a rape allegation in 2021, she wouldn’t have later gone to the house of Player X where she alleges he sexually assaulted her.

“If they had decided to take the first allegation seriously… if they had suspended him, I never would have been in that situation that I was in that day,” she told the BBC.

“Their decision caused me to suffer,” she said.

While the FA has detailed policies in place for players accused of betting on the game, there isn’t anything similar for players accused of sexual or domestic violence that takes place beyond the football environment.

Some lawyers in the UK have noted the many legal difficulties facing football clubs when considering how to deal with a player facing allegations of sexual or domestic violence, without overarching rules in place.