The global players' union Fifpro has called on Fifa to impose a worldwide coaching prohibition on Petr Vlachovsky, a Czech coach found guilty of covertly recording female footballers in changing facilities and showers.
Vlachovsky used a concealed camera to film 14 players at FC Slovacko across a four-year period. He was also discovered to possess child sexual abuse material.
The Czech player union CAFH has been working alongside Fifpro to pursue the international ban. In a statement released on Tuesday, Fifpro confirmed that CAFH "has been closely supporting the players since Vlachovsky's arrest."
The union is additionally pressing the Czech Football Association to enforce a permanent domestic ban on Vlachovsky and all individuals convicted of sexual offences within the sport.
Vlachovsky received his conviction in May 2025 following proceedings held without a public hearing. The court handed down a one-year prison sentence, suspended, along with a coaching ban limited to the Czech Republic for five years.
His youngest victim at the club was just 17 years old. The former coach had previously been in charge of the Czech women's under-19 national team.
Under current restrictions, Vlachovsky could resume coaching domestically as soon as 2030. More concerning still, no prohibition currently prevents him from taking up coaching positions elsewhere in the world.
Fifpro and CAFH are working to close this loophole. The world players' union is exploring legal options to secure a global ban that would prevent Vlachovsky from coaching anywhere internationally.
FC Slovacko’s home ground, the Mestsky fotbalovy stadion | GETTYMarketa Vochoska Haindlova, who chairs CAFH and sits on the Fifpro Europe board, explained the decision to publicise the case.
"After careful consideration and at the players' direction, we made the entire case public," she said.
"Even though the media attention created additional pressure on the players, it is also an important step to create awareness of the broader issue of abuse in sports, and work towards the prevention of this happening again."
She criticised the punishment as wholly inadequate. "The sentence of one year's suspended imprisonment with a three-year deferral does not send the right signal," Haindlova stated.
The union chief emphasised that coaching bans must be the priority. "There must be a zero-tolerance policy here to send a clear signal that such behaviour will never be tolerated and swiftly eradicated," she said. "A one strike policy must apply and a lifetime ban must be the only option."
The Vlachovsky case follows a similar incident in Austria just one week earlier. A former official at Altach was convicted of secretly capturing images and videos of the women's team in their changing room, gym and showers, including footage of minors.
He received a suspended prison sentence and a €1,200 fine, with victims awarded just €625 each in compensation.
Former Altach player Eleni Rittmann expressed disbelief at the outcome. "This leaves me speechless," she said. "We felt secure in our dressing room and this hurt our privacy so badly that some of us do not feel safe in public showers even now."
The prosecutor has requested additional time to consider lodging an appeal against the verdict.
Fifpro is understood to be advocating for stronger safeguarding protocols and improved cross-border information sharing when coaches face such convictions.