Andy Carroll has revealed that he was sexually assaulted by a man in 2021. The former England forward sets out the details in his autobiography, Owning It. As a victim of sexual assault, Carroll had been automatically granted anonymity, meaning he could not previously be identified.
The 37-year-old said the incident took place at his home while he was in the middle of a second spell at Newcastle. The offender — a friend of his former partner, who was staying away at the time — was later jailed for three years. Carroll testified in court, where the attacker was found guilty of sexual offences and placed on the sex offenders register. Carroll described the experience of giving evidence as “humiliating and embarrassing and absolutely horrendous”.
Carroll said the assault happened while he was sleeping. He threw the man out of the house, and knocked him unconscious when the man attempted to get back inside.
In the book, Carroll wrote: “I was sexually assaulted, there I said it. Scary to even think about and only a few people knew about it before now.” He explained that he had decided to include the incident “at the very last minute” after discussing it with his partner, Lou Teasdale. “Me and Lou spent a lot of time discussing whether to mention it in this book or not. I avoided my publisher for so long that they probably suspected I got cold feet,” he wrote. “Scary to talk about but it’s made [me] the person I am today as much as any of the good stuff. And if me talking about it helps just one person then good, it will have been worth it.”
Carroll also described the lasting impact of the assault. “What happened to me affected every facet of my life. I’d think about it every day, making it difficult to focus on anything else, including football,” he said. “The trauma of what happened to me hasn’t gone away.”
Carroll is now a player and co-owner of the National League South club Dagenham & Redbridge. He previously played as a striker for Liverpool and West Ham, and represented England.