Women's Soccer Team Co-Owned by David Dobrik Takes Swift Action Amidst Vlog Squad Rape Scandal
YouTuber David Dobrik and his Vlog Squad faced accusations of sexual assault recently after an [...]
YouTuber David Dobrik and his Vlog Squad faced accusations of sexual assault recently after an anonymous woman's story was reported to Business Insider. Following these accusations, Dobrik is no longer part of the ownership group of soccer club Angel City FC. He has relinquished his minority stake.
Angel City Football Club President Julie Uhrman released the news in an internal letter. Sports journalist Meg Linehan obtained a copy and shared it on social media. "I want to address the current events with one of our owners and the steps we took to ensure we live up to Who We Are," the letter said in part. "Angel City was built to lead by example, to set higher expectations, and to do the right thing, even when the right thing is hard. To that end, David Dobrik is no longer an owner of Angel City."
— Angel City FC (@weareangelcity) March 23, 2021
The club also released an official statement on Twitter Monday that provided more information about the situation. The club said that it was "deeply disturbed" by the allegations against Vlog Squad and Dobrik. Angel City said that it supported the individuals that came forward with the allegations and that it asked Dobrik to relinquish his minority stake.
"Angel City condemns sexism, sexual harassment, sexual assault, racism, racial injustice, and racial insensitivity," the club said. "We should have been faster to reaffirm our steadfast commitment to promoting and standing up for justice and equality."
According to The Verge, the rape allegations focus on Dom Zeglaitis, better known as Durte Dom. The former member of Dobrik's Vlog Squad is accused of raping a woman in 2018. The alleged incident occurred during the course of filming a video for Dobrik's YouTube channel. Portions of the encounter surfaced on YouTube, but the alleged victim requested that they be taken down.
Additionally, another former member of the Vlog Squad, Joseth "Seth" Francois, said that he was tricked into kissing someone as part of a prank in 2017. Francois told BuzzFeed News that he was blindfolded and made to believe that he would be kissing a girl. Instead, he unknowingly kissed YouTuber Jason Nash.
Along with his losing his ownership stake in Angel City FC, several sponsors are no longer working with Dobrik. The list reportedly includes HelloFresh, EA Sports, Dollar Shave Club, Chipotle, SeatGeek, and Facebook. There are reportedly 11 brands total that are no longer working with the YouTuber.