Alex Cooper, host of the massively popular podcast Call Her Daddy, claims she experienced sexual harassment while playing college soccer.
Before launching her podcasting career, the 30-year-old competed for Boston University’s Division I soccer team from 2013 to 2015. In her upcoming two-part Hulu docuseries, Call Her Alex, she alleged that she was sexually harassed by the team’s coach, Nancy Feldman.
According to People, Cooper became emotional as she described how Feldman started to “fixate” on her, “way more than any other teammate of mine.” She said Feldman began obsessing over her during her sophomore year of college.
“[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,” she revealed, adding that Feldman supposedly once asked her if she had sex the night before.
“It was this psychotic game of, ‘You want to play? Tell me about your sex life,'” she said. “I felt so deeply uncomfortable.”
She also claimed Feldman would ask her to get in a car with her alone.
“I was attending BU on a full-tuition scholarship. If I didn’t follow this woman’s rules, I was gone,” she explained, describing why she didn’t speak out about Feldman’s alleged conduct until now.
She said she told her parents about the abuse, but when they consulted with lawyers, they were told the case could drag on for years. Cooper said she and her family approached Boston University officials and provided written documentation, but no action was taken. Feldman retired in 2022.
During a Q&A following the docuseries premiere at the Tribeca Festival on Sunday (June 8), Cooper said she was “nervous and scared” to share the allegations. But director Ry Russo-Young was “incredibly supportive” and helped her feel more at ease.
“I’m not ashamed that it took me 10 years,” she said. “But it makes me question a lot, and I think this documentary, as difficult as it was to explore, I actually think this is just the beginning. … It’s really opened my eyes to how difficult the system is, and it’s so built against us as women.”
Call Her Alex premieres on Hulu on Tuesday (June 10).
