Football child sex abuse scandal - cases on the rise
Tuesday 11 July 2017 17:45, UK
Police investigating football's child sex abuse scandal are reporting more cases.
They have identified 276 potential suspects - up from 252 when figures were last published in April.
They have also identified 741 victims. That figure previously stood at 560.
There are 328 football clubs involved in the inquiry, codenamed Operation Hydrant. They span all tiers of the game from the Premier League down to amateur level.
The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC), who is co-ordinating the investigation, have said the ages of the victims at the time of the abuse range from four to 20.
Ninety-five per cent of the victims are male.
A hotline was set up to report abuse after the scandal broke late last year when a number of high-profile ex-footballers came forward to say they had been victims of sexual abuse as youngsters.
Police forces across the UK received an increased number of calls from victims and from people offering information.
The FA is carrying out an independent review into its handling of abuse allegations before 2005.
