PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland Timbers have terminated midfielder Andy Polo’s contract, citing recent allegations of domestic violence against his partner.
The announcement came Thursday, one day after the club said Major League Soccer had suspended Polo after allegations of domestic violence against the player. The Timbers said Wednesday that Polo was banned from all team activities while MLS conducted its investigation.
The Timbers revealed Polo had been previously cited for harassment after Washington County deputies responded to a dispute between him and his partner May 23.
Stephan Lewis, who is on the board of directors of the “107 independent supporters trust” that represents the Timbers Army and Rose City Riveters, says being the best soccer organization in the world is about more than scoring goals and making the playoffs.
“We’re in a time where accountability is important, where integrity is important, where transparency is important,” Lewis explained.
He says when it comes to those aspects of integrity, Timbers ownership and management proved again, they have a low standard. He says they “swept under the rug” allegations that Polo abused his wife in May of last year.
“This is hitting people really, really hard,” Lewis said.
The ordeal harkens back to last fall when two Portland Thorns players came forward accusing then Thorns head coach Paul Riley of sexual misconduct.
“These are the things we’ve heard about, these are the things people have gone to the media about. I’m always concerned about what else there might be and do they have the capacity to not do this type of thing,” Lewis said.
Back then the Riveters and Timbers Army sent a list of demands to leadership that they believe would help create more transparency, but Lewis says those leaders have done little to regain supporters trust.
“If you’re going to be leaders in the way we hope they would be and dealing with the issues that they’ve been facing, they need to learn and grow from mistakes and be willing to be open minded about road maps to get there,” Lewis said.
In a press release, the club said “the Timbers were previously aware of a dispute between Andy Polo and his partner on May 23, 2021, that resulted in the Washington County Sheriff’s Office citing Polo for harassment. That citation was not subsequently pursued by the victim or the prosecutor’s office. We deeply regret not suspending Polo immediately, especially considering the troubling new details of abuse that surfaced this week. It was a failure on our part, and one that will never happen again.”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or go to thehotline.org. All calls are free and confidential.