Uefa hands Czech coach lifetime ban for secretly filming players

UEFA has imposed a lifetime ban on Petr Vlachovsky, the Czech coach convicted of secretly filming female footballers in changing rooms and showers at 1. FC Slovácko. The governing body’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body said he breached three sections of Article 11 of UEFA’s disciplinary regulations and urged FIFA to extend the sanction worldwide while also pressing the Czech FA, known as FACR, to revoke his coaching licence.

The punishment sharpens a case that had already led to a five-year domestic coaching ban in Czechia. Vlachovsky had been handed a suspended one-year jail term in the criminal case, with the underlying punishment later becoming public in March 2026 after it was handed down in 2025. UEFA’s escalation signals that football’s internal disciplinary system is now moving beyond national sanctions in cases involving abuse and covert surveillance.

The recordings were made over a four-year period at 1. FC Slovácko, where Vlachovsky once worked as women’s head coach. Reports say he hid a miniature camera in a backpack and filmed 14 players, including at least one who was 17 at the time. Police discovered the covert footage online in September 2023, leading to his arrest and exposing a case that had remained hidden from the victims for years.

Players from 1. FC Slovácko said they only learned they had been filmed after the arrest. The Czech Association of Soccer Players and the global union FIFPRO have both called for a lifetime football ban for Vlachovsky and for all sexual offenders, arguing that sanctions inside the sport should match the seriousness of the misconduct. FIFPRO has said it is exploring legal avenues to secure an international ban.

The case has also drawn attention because of Vlachovsky’s standing in Czech women’s football before the scandal broke. He previously led the Czech U-19 women’s national team and was once voted the best women’s coach in Czechia. That history has made the fallout especially stark, underscoring how institutional prestige and weak oversight can allow abuse to continue unchecked until police intervene.